Trump says Ukraine deal will be soon or not at all after Starmer talks

Donald Trump suggested a Ukraine peace deal will come 'fairly soon or not at all' tonight as he hailed 'special' Keir Starmer during an extraordinary White House love-in. At a keenly-anticipated joint press conference, the president gave a loose timeline for his efforts to negotiate with Vladimir Putin. He also dropped hints that the UK will be spared from the worst of his tariffs, saying Sir Keir had been 'working hard' to convince him over lunch.

Mr Trump revealed that he hopes a 'very good' Transatlantic trade agreement might be done 'quickly' to avoid the need for levies - as he complimented Sir Keir's accent and even his 'impressive' wife. For his part Sir Keir lavished praise on Mr Trump's efforts to bring peace, but stressed any settlement must be lasting and not favour the 'invader' amid continuing doubts about whether the US will offer security guarantees. He welcomed a bust of Winston Churchill being returned to the Oval Office, and said they wanted to work together on a 'new economic deal with advanced technology at its core'. Pitching himself as a fellow 'winner' on stage with Mr Trump, Sir Keir acknowledged that they were from very different political traditions. But he said they both believed 'it's not the taking part that counts, it's winning... if you don't win, you don't deliver'.

At one point Sir Keir laughed off a question about Mr Trump's desire to make Canada a US state by saying: 'I think you are trying to find a divide between us that does not exist.' Earlier, the smiling PM was greeted by the president with a warm handshake outside the famous building in Washington. In the Oval Office, Sir Keir handed Mr Trump a letter from the King inviting him for an unprecedented second state visit, and he responded that he would be coming to the UK 'soon'. Key moments at the talks in Washington - which will have delighted Downing Street after weeks of anxiety - included:

The president insisted he stands by Nato's Article 5 that lays out the commitment to collective defence; Mr Trump said he 'had confidence' that a deal with Russia for peace in Ukraine could hold, but he was taking an approach of 'trust but verify' with Putin; He suggested the raw minerals deal with Mr Zelensky, expected to be signed tomorrow, amounted to a security 'backstop'. 'I don't think anyone's going to play around while we're there' Said he did not 'remember' calling Mr Zelensky a 'dictator' after the remark caused a huge backlash, and described him as 'very brave'; The president heaped compliments on Sir Keir, insisting the pair get along 'famously' and were in agreement on 'almost everything'; Sir Keir moved to correct Mr Trump after he repeated his claim that European countries had only loaned Ukraine money, saying it had been 'gifted' and would not be recouped.

At the press conference, Sir Keir said he and Mr Trump had a 'very productive discussion' about a US security guarantee for a Ukrainian peace deal. Asked if he felt satisfied about the so-called backstop after discussions with Mr Trump, Sir Keir said: 'I thought we had a very productive discussion. 'Obviously, as the President says, the deal has to come first. But, yes, our teams are going to be talking about how we make sure that deals sticks, is lasting, and enforced. So, our teams will be talking about that.' Sir Keir paid tribute to Mr Trump's 'personal commitment to bring peace' in Ukraine and said the UK is 'ready to put boots on the ground and planes in the air to support a deal'. He said: 'We're focused now on bringing an enduring end to the barbaric war in Ukraine. Mr President, I welcome your deep and personal commitment to bring peace and to stop the killing.

'You've created a moment of tremendous opportunity to reach a historic peace deal. 'A deal that I think would be celebrated in Ukraine and around the world. That is the prize. But we have to get it right … it can't be peace that rewards the aggressor or that gives encouragement to regimes like Iran. 'We agree history must be on the side of the peacemaker, not the invader. 'So, the stakes, they couldn't be higher. 'We're determined to work together to deliver a good deal. We've discussed a plan today to reach a peace that is tough and fair. That Ukraine will help shape. That's backed by strength to stop Putin coming back for more. 'I'm working closely with other European leaders on this and I'm clear that the UK is ready to put boots on the ground and planes in the air to support a deal. Working together with our allies, because that is the only way that peace will last.' Mr Trump batted away his previous jibe at Mr Zelensky not holding elections during the war, and voiced optimism about their talks. 'I think we're going to have a very good meeting tomorrow morning. We're going to get along really well,' he said. 'I have a lot of respect for him.'

He added: 'We've given him a lot of equipment and a lot of money, but they have fought very bravely, no matter how you figure they have really fought. Somebody has to use that equipment and they have been very brave in that sense.' Mr Trump repeatedly raised the prospect of a trade deal - suggesting it might be a way of avoiding the need for tariffs on UK imports. 'We're going to have a great trade agreement, one way or another,' he said. 'We're going to end up with a very good trade agreement for both countries and we are working on that as we speak.' He added: 'I think we'll have something, maybe in terms of possibilities, agreed very shortly. 'We'll see if we can do something pretty quickly. But we're going to make some great trade agreements with the UK and with the Prime Minister, and it'll happen very quickly.' Mr Trump gave a hint that Britain - which he described as the 'No1 ally' - could be spared tariffs as the US goes on the attack over what it claims are unfair trade arrangements with the rest of the world.

Pressed on whether Sir Keir had convinced him not to impose trade tariffs on the UK, Donald Trump said: 'He tried.' The US President said: 'He was working hard, I'll tell you that. He earned whatever the hell they pay him over there, but he tried. 'I think there's a very good chance that in the case of these two great, friendly countries, I think we could very well end up with a real trade deal where the tariffs wouldn't be necessary. We'll see.' In the Oval Officer earlier, Mr Trump said Brexit had 'worked out' after he accused the EU of 'screwing' America, the president said relations with the UK were 'different' and 'warm'. Sir Keir interjected that the US had a slightly positive trade balance with Britain. Mr Trump suggested he would support the Chagos deal with Mauritius, i n an apparent win for the PM . Mr Trump claimed not to remember that he had described Volodymyr Zelensky as a 'dictator', acknowledging that things had got 'testy' despite their good relationship. At one point he insisted that Kyiv joining Nato is 'not going to happen', echoing a Russian talking point by claiming that Joe Biden raising the prospect was what 'started this whole thing'.

In one flicker of tensions, vice president JD Vance swiped at 'infringements on free speech' in the UK while answering a question. Sir Keir shot back: 'We have had free speech for a very long time in the UK. I'm very proud of that.' Mr Trump said: 'It's a great honour to have Prime Minister Starmer at the Oval Office. 'It's a very special place and he's a special man – and the United Kingdom is a wonderful country that I know very well, I'm there a lot. 'I'll be going there and we expect to see each other in the near future – we'll be announcing it. 'We're going to be discussing many things today, we're going to be discussing Russia/Ukraine, we'll be discussing trade and lots of other items, and I think we can say we are going to be getting along on every one of them. 'We've had a tremendous relationship and, frankly, the Prime Minister and I have met twice before, and we get along very famously, as you would say, and I look forward to it very much. 'We look forward to the day and the meeting, and we'll be having a luncheon after this, and then another work session, and I believe we're going to have a press conference at the end – so I look forward to it and, Mr Prime Minister, thank you very much.'

After being presented the letter from the King inviting him for a state visit, the US President said: 'The answer is yes. 'On behalf of our wonderful First Lady Melania and myself, the answer is yes and we look forward to being there and honouring the King and honouring really your country. 'Your country is a fantastic country and it'll be our honour to be there. 'Thank you very much.' Sir Keir responded: 'Well thank you very much Mr President. I shall happily take that back to His Majesty.' Asked if he could be persuaded to provide a backstop security position as part of a Ukraine peace settlement, Mr Trump said: 'President Zelensky is coming to see me on Friday, Friday morning, and we're going to be signing really a very important agreement for both sides, because it's really going to get us into that country.'

He added: 'It's a backstop, you could say, I don't think anybody's going to play around if we're there with a lot of workers and having to do with rare earths and other things which we need for our country. 'We appreciate it very much and I look forward to seeing him. We'll be talking about it and we'll also be talking about that today with the Prime Minister.' Reminded of his comment about Mr Zelensky being a 'dictator', Mr Trump said: 'Did I say that? I can't believe I said that. Next question, please go ahead.' The US President said he was able to 'get along with both' Mr Zelensky and Putin. He added: 'I have a very good relationship with President Putin. I think I have a very good relationship with President Zelensky.' He said: 'It maybe got a little bit testy because we wanted to have a little bit of what the European nations had. You know, they they get their money back by giving money, we don't get the money back. Biden made a deal. He put in 350 billion dollars and I thought it was a very unfair situation.'

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