Allies Britain 'will not have to choose' between US or Europe

Keir Starmer has "utterly rejected" the idea that the UK must choose between the United States and Europe once Donald Trump comes to power, arguing it is in the national interest to work with both.

- Pippa Crerar

The prime minister said the UK would "never turn away" from its relationship with the US, despite the difficulties the new administration could pose, as it had been the "cornerstone" of security and prosperity for more than a century.

Yet he would also continue to "reset" Britain's relationship with Europe, the country's biggest trading partner, he said, after years of neglect post-Brexit, as strong bilateral links were "vital" for growth and security.

"Against the backdrop of these dangerous times, the idea that we must choose between our allies, that somehow we're with either America or Europe, is plain wrong," he said.

"I reject it utterly. [Clement] Attlee did not choose between allies. [Winston] Churchill did not choose. The national interest demands that we work with both."

His remarks come after foreign policy and trade experts warned that Trump could put pressure on the UK in effect to pick sides between it and the EU if he presses ahead with threatened trade tariffs as president.