While any interaction between the PM and US President is likely to be light on politics given the occasion, Ukraine and a trade deal are gaining added urgency
Sir Keir Starmer and President Donald Trump could speak informally at the Pope’s funeral as the two issues of Ukraine and a UK-US trade deal gain added urgency.
The Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary David Lammy and the Prince of Wales will represent Britain at the ceremony at the Vatican on Saturday, joining world leaders and royalty from around the world.
While there are no official meetings scheduled for either Starmer or Prince William with the US President before or after the funeral, Government insiders expect there will be an opportunity for the Prime Minister to have a “brush-by” with Trump at some point during proceedings.
The Prince held talks with Trump when he was president-elect after the reopening of Notre Dame in Paris in December.
Trump has declared himself a fan of the British Royal Family and has described William as a “good man”, and it is likely that the President will take the opportunity to speak to him at some point during the proceedings in St Peter’s Square on Saturday morning.
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While any interaction between the President and Prime Minister is expected to be brief and light on politics given the solemnity of the occasion, the issues of a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia and a trade agreement between London and Washington could not be more pressing.
On Thursday Downing Street tried to paper over cracks in the international alliance on the war by playing down differences between the UK and US towards Ukraine and what a peace deal would look like.
Starmer’s official spokesman insisted that the Prime Minister and Trump are on the same page.
Yet, on Wednesday Trump wrote on this Truth Social platform that Crimea was “lost” to Russia in 2014 and should not even be part of peace talks for Ukraine.
This is in direct contradiction with UK Government policy that Crimea is sovereign Ukraine land. No 10 said on Thursday that the position of the Government had not changed.
And while the UK has insisted its commitment to Ukraine is “iron-clad”, Trump has stepped up his criticism of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky this week – although on Thursday he also urged Vladimir Putin to “stop” the war after the latest deadly airstrikes on Kyiv.
Starmer’s spokesman said Downing Street insisted it was not “taking sides” between Ukraine and the US in the talks.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “We share President Trump’s desire to bring this barbaric war to an end and we are working closely with the US and other international partners to secure a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.
“But we have been clear it remains the case that how and on what terms that war comes to end can only be decided by Ukraine.”
Speaking on a visit to Bristol, Starmer said the air strikes over night were “a real reminder that Russia is the aggressor here and that is being felt by the Ukrainians, as it has been felt for three long years now”.
During a meeting between Starmer and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen at Downing Street over a future UK-EU deal on defence and security on Thursday, the issue of Ukraine’s future was also discussed.
The UK and leading European nations are at the forefront of a coalition of the willing to create a “reassurance force” to hold the peace in Ukraine if a deal is ever struck.
No 10 denied that the pair would be discussing a plan for how the UK and EU will pursue peace talks between Ukraine and Russia if the US walked away from negotiations, as Trump, JD Vance and Marco Rubio have threatened.
But privately UK officials are braced for the prospect of peace talks without the US at the table, and insiders said the coalition of the willing arrangements would continue regardless of Trump’s decisions.
Starmer has previously said that the UK will support Ukraine “for as long as it takes”, one insider pointed out.
