Keir Starmer used the European Political Community summit in Armenia on 3-4 May to press Europe to confront tensions with Donald Trump as leaders focused on the wars in Ukraine and Iran. [1]
Starmer said the continent could not ignore strains in transatlantic ties. “We cannot deny that some of the alliances that we have come to rely on are not in the place we would want them to be,” he said. “There is more tension in the alliances than there should be and it’s very important that we therefore face up to this as a group of countries together.” [1]
European leaders are increasingly worried that the U.S. president is losing interest in the war in Ukraine, according to the summit readout. Starmer plans to use the meeting to open talks on British participation in the EU’s £78 billion loan scheme for Kyiv, which is meant to help fund support for Ukraine. [1]
If the talks succeed, British defence companies could supply equipment for Kyiv in return for a financial contribution of up to £400 million, drawn from the £3 billion Britain has ringfenced for Ukraine. The EU also expects the UK to put in more money if it wants wider access to European markets after Starmer called for deeper economic integration. [1]
Starmer and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen also agreed to begin talks on UK participation in an EU innovation fund. They set a goal of ambitious cooperation at the summer UK-EU summit. [1]
The UK’s wider access to parts of the EU market already has a price tag. European leaders agreed in March that Britain must pay into European structural and investment funds if it wants access to the EU single market for electricity. [1]
The next concrete milestone is the summer UK-EU summit, where Starmer and von der Leyen want to push cooperation further. [1]
