US President Donald Trump has addressed the political upheaval gripping Westminster just two days before his visit to the UK.
Speaking to reporters on the White House lawn, the US commander-in-chief laid out the itinerary of his week-long trip to Europe in characterically blunt style. “I have Nato, I have the UK which is in somewhat turmoil, and I have Putin,” he said. “Frankly, Putin may be the easiest of all.”
The two-day working visit to the UK would be “an interesting time”, Trump added.
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.
Interesting, certainly, but Theresa May and her allies might also say inopportune. May’s premiership has been left hanging by a thread following the dual resignations of Brexit minister David Davis and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson from her cabinet in protest at the Prime Minister’s Brexit plans.
Asked if May should remain in No. 10, Trump “offered few words of reassurance” for the beleaguered PM, says The Independent.
“That’s up to the people,” he said, adding: “I get along with her very well.”
Unhappily for May, his most effusive praise was reserved for the outgoing foreign secretary.
“Boris Johnson’s a friend of mine, he’s been very nice to me, very supportive and maybe I’ll speak to him when I get over there,” Trump said. In case there was any doubt on the matter, he added: “I like Boris Johnson, I’ve always liked him.”
The two-day whirlwind tour, which will see the president take in London, Windsor and Scotland, is set to be an uncomfortable experience both for Trump and his hosts.
Officers from regional police forces will pour into London on Friday to help their Met Police colleagues contain the anticipated mass demonstrations. The Guardian reports that Trump’s visit has spurred the biggest police mobilisation in the capital since the 2011 riots.
White House sources have already raised concerns that the scale of the protests - which will include a giant blimp over Whitehall caricaturing Trump as a crying baby - could prompt the thin-skinned president to “lash out” at his hosts.
Trump’s “extraordinary comments” today will do little to assuage fears that the two-day visit will be a “diplomatic minefield”, says the Daily Mail.
-
Nigel Farage: was he a teenage racist?Talking Point Farage’s denials have been ‘slippery’, but should claims from Reform leader’s schooldays be on the news agenda?
-
Pushing for peace: is Trump appeasing Moscow?In Depth European leaders succeeded in bringing themselves in from the cold and softening Moscow’s terms, but Kyiv still faces an unenviable choice
-
Sudoku medium: November 29, 2025The daily medium sudoku puzzle from The Week
-
Pushing for peace: is Trump appeasing Moscow?
In Depth European leaders succeeded in bringing themselves in from the cold and softening Moscow’s terms, but Kyiv still faces an unenviable choice
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
South Africa wraps up G20 summit boycotted by USSpeed Read Trump has been sparring with South Africa in recent months
-
Trump pushes new Ukraine peace planSpeed Read It involves a 28-point plan to end the war
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
-
Nigeria confused by Trump invasion threatSpeed Read Trump has claimed the country is persecuting Christians
-
Ukraine: Donald Trump pivots againIn the Spotlight US president apparently warned Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept Vladimir Putin’s terms or face destruction during fractious face-to-face
