John Jefferson
Joe Biden has backed Keir Starmer’s ambitions to take the UK back closer to the European Union and undo some of the damage caused by Brexit.
The president, who has been a critic of Brexit and the UK’s departure from the EU, made it clear he values the special relationship but only as a “knot” tying together the US and Europe.
He made his comments as Sir Keir had his first audience with the president in the Oval Office since winning the election last week.
President Biden said: “I kind of see you guys as the knot tying the transatlantic alliance together, the closer you are with Europe. We know where you are, you know where we are.”
Sir Keir responded: “Well I think that’s absolutely right.”
It comes as Sir Keir has started the process of renegotiating Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal and also setting up a new EU security pact.
Nearly two and a half centuries after America severed its’ political bonds to the British Empire, President Biden said the United States and the United Kingdom are nonetheless “the best of allies in the whole world” as he met with the new prime minister, Sir Keir, in the Oval Office.
The meeting between the 81-year-old American president and Starmer, a full two decades his junior, came after both leaders participated in talks with other Nato heads of state and government on the first full day of the 32-member block’s annual summit in Washington.
Th two men met immediately after England’s victory over the Netherlands in the Euro 24 championship which clearly cheered Sir Keir ahead of the meeting.
Asked if he thought football is coming home, Starmer replied: “I think it is.”
The preident also congratulated England on the victory and said “it is down to your prime minister.”
Sir Keir responded that England re undefeated under his Premiership and he has confirmed he will be going to the final on Sunday in Berlin.
Meanwhie, Biden said the UK — a founding signatory of the North Atlantic Treaty — is “knot that ties the transatlantic alliance together” as the two men sat side-by-side during a brief availability with reporters.
“‘The closer you are with Europe, the more engaged … because we know where you are and we know where we are,” he said.
The sit-down between the two leaders kicked off with a bit of levity when reporters asked Starmer if football was “coming home” following England’s 2-1 victory over The Netherlands in the Euro 2024 semifinal.
When he replied that “it looks like it,” Biden chimed in to credit the Prime Minister with the win.
Sir Keir played along, quipping that England res undefeated since the start of the Labour government he leads after the party won the most seats in the July 4 general election.
Turning to more serious matters, the Prime Minister congratulated Biden on hosting this year’s summit and credited the president with ushering in what he described as “a bigger NATO, a stronger NATO and a NATO with the resolve that we need.”
He also said the Anglo-American “special relationship” was “so important” and added that it was “forged in difficult circumstances,” had “endured for so long” and is “stronger now than ever.”
The meeting between American and British leaders comes as Biden faced more calls for him to stand down from his re-election effort following his disastrous performance in a general election debate against his predecessor and current Republican challenger, former president Donald Trump.
Trump, an opponent of NATO who has threatened to reneg on America’s commitment to the mutual defense provisions of the North Atlantic Treaty should allied nations fail to spend enough on defense, is currently leading Biden in most public opinion polling, causing consternation among NATO leaders who fear that the Republican could destabilize the alliance by pulling America out of it should he return to office next year.
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