US President Donald Trump is stepping up his dispute with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. He accuses London of hesitant behavior.
03/08/2026, 05:1903/08/2026, 05:19
Thomas Wanhoff / t-online
Relations between the USA and Great Britain are increasingly deteriorating. US President Donald Trump has now railed against and mocked British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Uneasy relationship: Donald Trump and Keir Starmer.Image: keystone
“The United Kingdom, our once great ally, perhaps even the greatest of all, is now seriously considering sending two aircraft carriers to the Middle East,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“That’s fine, Prime Minister Starmer, we don’t need them anymore – but we will remember them. We don’t need people who only get involved in wars after we’ve already won them!”
Starmer had already rejected criticism from Trump a few days ago and said he stood by his decision not to support the first joint attacks by the USA and Israel. Trump had previously accused him of waiting too long to release air bases. “It is my duty to judge what is in the national interest of Great Britain,” Starmer said.
Since US President Donald Trump took office again in January 2025, the relationship between the US and Great Britain has visibly changed. Although both governments continue to emphasize the traditionally close relationships of the so-called “special relationship”, Trump’s foreign policy course continues to cause tensions.
Washington is placing greater emphasis on national interests, particularly when it comes to questions of trade policy and support for international alliances. At the same time, London is trying to maintain close security policy solidarity with the USA without completely adapting to Trump’s confrontational course towards partners in Europe.
Despite these differences, Great Britain remains a key ally for the USA, for example in NATO and in intelligence cooperation within the “Five Eyes” alliance.
Sharp criticism of Starmer by former Prime Minister Tony Blair
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair sharply criticized incumbent Prime Minister Keir Starmer because he refused to politically support US military actions. Blair said Starmer should have supported US President Donald Trump from the beginning of the escalation. When it comes to an ally that is an “indispensable cornerstone of our own security,” Britain must show its presence, emphasized Blair.
According to the former Labor prime minister, the US only asked that British military bases be used for refueling stops. Trump also has a “fundamental understanding of what is at stake in the Middle East.” Blair, who once supported the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan led by US President George W. Bush, also put the current situation into perspective: The conflict cannot be compared with Vietnam or the Iraq War, in which thousands of British soldiers were sent.
Sources used:
- truthsocial.com: Post by Donald Trump (English)
- telegraph.co.uk: “Blair rebukes Starmer over failure to back Trump’s Iran war” (English, paid)
- With material from the Reuters news agency