Theresa May and Donald Trump held talks at the World Economic Forum today, offering the Prime Minister a chance to rekindle the strained “special relationship” following the cancellation of a visit by Trump to London.
Trump went to great lengths to dispel rumours of a rift between the UK and US, saying he and May have a mutual feeling of “liking each other a lot”.
“We have great respect for everything you’re doing, and we love your country. We think it’s truly good,” Trump told the Prime Minister, according to The Guardian.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The UK and the UK are working on economic development, trade and military issues, Trump added.
Some commentators feared that May would struggle to be heard by the US president at all during their meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
“During formal phone calls between the two leaders, May finds it almost impossible to make headway and get her points across,” Bloomberg says. ”Trump totally dominates the discussion, leaving the Prime Minister with five or ten seconds to speak before he interrupts and launches into another monologue.”
White House national security adviser H.R. McMaster said yesterday that Trump was prioritising his hastily arranged meeting with the British leader, “because we do have a special relationship”.
Trump’s two-day Swiss blitz is an opportunity for him to promote his America First agenda to Davos’ globalists, Reuters says. But his mind may be elsewhere, following the revelation that the US president is to testify under oath about claims of Russian meddling in the US election.
Meanwhile, May will be pitching her post-Brexit strategy to billionaires such as Bill Gates, world leaders including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and chief executives from banks and private equity firms such as Blackstone who are considering relocating to Dublin, Frankfurt or the US.
The PM’s speech this afternoon focused on social media giants. She urged investors to pressure tech giants to respond more quickly to extremist content on social networks, the BBC reports.
“Investors can make a big difference here by ensuring trust and safety issues are being properly considered - and I urge them to do so,” May said.
-
Israel and Hamas meet on hostages, Trump’s planSpeed Read Hamas accepted the general terms of Trump’s 20-point plan, including the release of all remaining hostages
-
US tipped to help Kyiv strike Russian energy sitesSpeed Read Trump has approved providing Ukraine with intelligence for missile strikes on Russian energy infrastructure
-
Netanyahu agrees to Trump’s new Gaza peace planSpeed Read At President Trump's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, they agreed upon a plan to end Israel’s war in Gaza
-
Russia is ‘helping China’ prepare for an invasion of TaiwanIn the Spotlight Russia is reportedly allowing China access to military training
-
Interpol arrests hundreds in Africa-wide sextortion crackdownIN THE SPOTLIGHT A series of stings disrupts major cybercrime operations as law enforcement estimates millions in losses from schemes designed to prey on lonely users
-
The dark history of myths about immigrants eating swans and petsIn the Spotlight Nigel Farage has mimicked Donald Trump and peddled tropes and rumours that have long been used to ‘dehumanise’ immigrants
-
What would happen if Israel lost America’s support?Today’s big question Loss of US backing could be a ‘catastrophe’ for Israel
-
Charlie Kirk, Jimmy Kimmel and free speechTalking Point TV host’s cancellation and Trump administration’s threats to media have led to accusations of Maga hypocrisy
