Keir Starmer is desperately trying to dodge taking sides in Donald Trump‘s trade standoff with the EU today.
The PM pushed his case for a post-Brexit ‘reset’ in relations as he attended a Brussels summit dinner last night.
The president of the European Council, Antonio Costa, hailed the UK as a ‘natural partner’ and said there was a new ‘positive energy’.
And in a speech in the Belgian capital this morning Europe minister Nick Thomas-Symonds called for a ‘ruthlessly pragmatic’ approach to boosting trade.
But there are fears Britain could find itself caught in the middle of a bitter battle, after the US president branded the EU’s behaviour ‘atrocious’ and vowed to impose tariffs on imports.
In contrast, Mr Trump hinted that the UK could escape levies – which he is openly using as a tool for wider policy aims – despite being ‘out of line’.
Meanwhile, Cabinet splits have emerged over whether to bow to EU demands for a youth mobility agreement – which would allow under-30s to work freely in this country. Yvette Cooper again dismissed the prospect at the weekend, but other ministers are said to be backing the idea.
French diplomats have jibed that Sir Keir is starting negotiations as a supplicant, claiming Brexit has been shown to have failed.

The president of the European Council, Antonio Costa (pictured right with Keir Starmer), hailed the UK as a ‘natural partner’ and said there was a new ‘positive energy’

The PM pushed his case for a post-Brexit ‘reset’ in relations as he attended a Brussels summit dinner last night (pictured with Emmanuel Macron)

There are fears Britain could find itself caught in the middle of a bitter battle, after Donald Trump (pictured) branded the EU’s behaviour ‘atrocious’ and vowed to impose tariffs on imports
Mr Thomas-Symonds, the minister responsible for leading Sir Keir’s ‘reset’, said in his speech: ‘A study published last year showed that between 2021 and 2023 the goods EU businesses export to the UK were down by 32 per cent, whilst UK goods exports to the EU were down by 27 per cent.
‘That is not good for British or European businesses, especially at a time when our economies need a kickstart.
‘Reducing trade barriers is of mutual benefit to the UK and the EU.’
Sir Keir was the first UK PM to attend a European Council meeting since Brexit.
He told leaders over dinner: ‘We need to deepen co-operation to protect ourselves from state threats and sabotage, including on sub-sea infrastructure.’
In January, the Government revealed a nuclear-powered Royal Navy attack submarine was used to warn off the Russian spy vessel Yantar which was caught loitering over ‘UK critical undersea infrastructure’.
Sir Keir told the leaders they should ‘explore greater co-operation on missions and operations, like we’re already doing with our operations in the Red Sea and our work to train Ukrainian troops’.
The premier, who is pushing for closer defence and security ties as part of his ‘reset’ in relations with the EU, also called for more work on military research and development, where the UK has ‘unique skills’.
He also suggested measures to improve military mobility and logistics, and suggested the EU and UK should ‘deepen our industrial collaboration’ – warning against ‘fragmentation’ across the bloc.
‘We will be more successful in building the European defence sector and contributing more to our own defence if we work together,’ he said.

Sir Keir was the first UK PM to attend a European Council meeting since Brexit
European Council president António Costa said: The UK is our natural partner and our meeting confirmed that there is a new positive energy in our relationship. There is a lot we can do together on defence and to address global challenges.’
Reform leader Nigel Farage told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that Labour should not ‘tie ourselves to industrial collaboration’ with the EU.
‘You can have negotiations, you can be friendly, you can do all those things. But if we start to tie ourselves to industrial collaboration, as appears was agreed last night, then we find ourselves with less flexibility in doing deals with countries like America,’ he said.
Asked about polls showing many Britons want closer ties, Mr Farage said: ‘We voted to leave. That was very, very clear. We can be friendly, we can be co-operative.’
Pressed to explain what that meant in practice, he said: ‘Well, I think the deal that was negotiated by the Johnson government wasn’t a very good one. We can improve on that.’
But Mr Farage suggested that he would not back a new deal even if it ruled out more fishing access to EU boats.
‘I do not see that any steps… back towards a failing European Union makes sense in a world that is changing very, very quickly,’ he said.
As Transatlantic rhetoric ramped up, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned that China would be ‘laughing’ if the US started a trade war with the bloc.
But EU Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said: ‘When targeted unfairly or arbitrarily, the European Union will respond firmly.’
This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .