As the tensions between the UK and the increasingly erratic and aggressive Donald Trump administration continue to escalate, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has opted for a strategy of “steady diplomacy” in his approach to the US president. In what amounted to an emergency press conference, Starmer made it clear that he does not believe Trump’s threats to launch military action in Greenland are genuine, and that the best course of action is to avoid a head-on collision with the US leader.
Starmer’s pragmatic stance is rooted in the UK’s deep dependence on the US for trade, investment, intelligence, and national security, including the nuclear deterrent. The prime minister understands the unequal power dynamic between the post-Brexit Britain and the United States, and he has made it clear to President Trump that the future of Greenland is a matter for Greenlanders and Danes, and that a trade war is in nobody’s interest.
While some may feel tempted to take a more confrontational approach, Starmer’s experience has taught him that standing up to Trump often only serves to make him more aggressive, while appeasing him only invites more bullying. The prime minister’s cautious approach, which he has described as “serious diplomacy,” is a stark contrast to the “performative” outrage that some politicians might feel compelled to express on social media.
Starmer’s steady hand has been crucial in navigating the UK’s relationship with the US during this turbulent period. As the president’s fixation on gaining “complete and total control of Greenland” continues to unfold, the prime minister has been working tirelessly to convince Trump that the UK’s recent show of solidarity with other European nations in the Arctic region was not intended as a hostile act against the US.
The lesson from this particular incident, according to Starmer, is that it is best to involve President Trump in any action in “his” hemisphere that he might find remotely problematic. The wider lesson regarding Trump’s irascible style of diplomacy is much the same: there is no need to overreact to his own overreactions and thus escalate conflicts when the obvious solution is to calm things down and buy time.
For his role as the unofficial “Trump whisperer,” Starmer deserves some sort of “little peace prize of his own,” as the old slogan goes, “keep calm and carry on.”
