The Prime Minister hosted Germany’s Chancellor for talks before travelling to Brussels to meet the leaders of all 27 EU states on Monday
Sir Keir Starmer is set to warn European leaders that they need to do more to support Ukraine in the era of Donald Trump.
The Prime Minister is travelling to Brussels for talks with the head of Nato on Monday, ahead of a dinner with all 27 EU leaders which is seen as a key moment in his attempted “reset” of post-Brexit relations.
Part of his push for closer ties on security and defence will be an implicit warning that with US support for Europe less certain than before, the continent must do more to protect itself and help Kyiv in its fight against Russian aggression.
Starmer hosted Germany’s Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, at his country retreat Chequers on Sunday and agreed that Europe’s defence industry should become more integrated to boost mutual security.
On Monday he is expected to say: “We need to see all allies stepping up – particularly in Europe. President Trump has threatened more sanctions on Russia and it’s clear that’s got Putin rattled. We know that he’s worried about the state of the Russian economy.
“I’m here to work with our European partners on keeping up the pressure, targeting the energy revenues and the companies supplying his missile factories to crush Putin’s war machine. Because ultimately, alongside our military support, that is what will bring peace closer.”
No 10 said the Prime Minister would also “set out his pitch for an ambitious UK-EU defence and security partnership with a number of steps to increase co-operation on shared threats, and go further on cross-border crime and illegal migration”.
The dinner in Brussels will be the first time since Brexit – which took place just over five years ago – that a British premier has met simultaneously with every EU leader.
Although the event is not expected to result in any concrete agreement, Starmer is hoping to use it to show he is serious about improving relations with the bloc.
But he insisted that would not involve reversing any part of the Brexit settlement, telling broadcasters: “I’ve been very clear since I became Prime Minister that I do want a reset of the relationship between the UK and the EU.
“That does not involve a return to the European Union – we had a referendum here on that and that matter is settled. But I do want to see a closer relationship on defence and security, on energy, on trade and our economy, and that is what we’re working on.”
During his Chequers talks with Scholz, the two leaders agreed on “the importance of scaling up and coordinating defence production across Europe”, according to a Downing Street spokesman.
Starmer said that Western allies should also aim to put Ukraine “in the strongest possible position in the coming months, so that peace could be achieved through strength”. It is not known whether they discussed the possibility of committing peacekeeping troops to the country in future to guarantee any agreement to end the current conflict.
David McAllister, chair of the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, told Sky News that the UK still needed to present “concrete proposals” on how to improve its relationship with the EU. He added: “The ball is definitely now in the British court.”
Andrew Griffith, the Conservatives’ shadow Business Secretary, argued that the Government should focus on the US rather than the EU. He said: “We have a trade deal with the European Union already, so, alongside that, a trade deal with the US would be a big win.”
But Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey called on Starmer to be more ambitious and start the process of rejoining the EU’s customs union – saying: “As well as strengthening our co-operation on defence and security it’s also in our national interest to bolster ties with our European neighbours on trade, which was so badly damaged by the Conservatives.”