Analysis How the right fired row over Chagos

When Kemi Badenoch met Mike Johnson, the Republican speaker of the House of Representatives, on Monday evening, she pressed him on two issues: the Chagos Islands deal and North Sea oil drilling.

- Kiran Stacey & Pippa Crerar

Neither participant was part of their respective executive branch, and neither issue was at the centre of crisis which has engulfed transatlantic politics. But before long, the meeting had some very real political consequences.

The brief encounter set off a chain of events including a call from Johnson to Donald Trump, a social media blast from the US president against the Chagos deal, and yesterday, an unprecedented public rebuff to Trump from Keir Starmer.

"President Trump deployed words on Chagos yesterday that were different to his previous words of welcome and support. He deployed those words for the express purpose of putting pressure on me and Britain," the prime minister told the Commons.

"He wants me to yield on my position, and I'm not going to do so ... I will not yield. Britain will not yield on our principles and values about the future of Greenland and the threats of tariffs."

The developments of the past 48 hours initially blindsided Downing Street but have resulted in a new, more combative stance from the prime minister. One which, some believe, could fundamentally alter the dynamic in his relationship with Trump and redraw US-UK relations for the foreseeable future.

"The future of Greenland is for people of Greenland and Kingdom of Denmark alone, and tariffs to pressure allies is completely wrong," a spokesperson for the prime minister said afterwards. "This is a significant moment, a national moment."