LONDON — President Trump has just concluded a press conference with Prime Minister Theresa May at the British equivalent of Camp David, Chequers. Here are my top takeaways.
1) The Brexit fight was a temporary storm in a metaphorical teapot
Trump very notably backed away from comments he made to The Sun newspaper on Thursday evening in which he poured doubt on existing efforts to reach a trade deal with Britain. Trump had said he would not accept a trade deal in which the U.S. dealt with Britain under terms fixed by the European Union. That poses problems for the U.K. in that it desperately wants to have a trade deal in place within months of its departure from the E.U. on March 29, 2019.
But as was predictable, the president changed tack at Chequers saying that May’s commitments in meetings this morning lead him to believe a good trade deal is possible. Various journalists pushed Trump and May on the divergences as indicated in The Sun interview, but neither budged. So while issues do remain in that trade deal’s formulation, we are now back where we were 48 hours ago. Which is to say, looking forwards towards a deal being reached.
2) Trump reinforced the special relationship
Describing the special relationship as the “highest level of special,” Trump referenced the interwoven relationship between British and U.S. security forces. The president observed that May is an “incredible woman” and he gave a robust defense of his response to Russia following that nation’s chemical weapons attack on British soil earlier this year. May thanked him for those words.
The British establishment will welcome the personal rapport that Trump seems to have built with May over the past 24 hours of this visit.
3) Trump views Putin through the prism of NATO
On questions as to his strategy of aggressively pushing NATO member states to do more to support the alliance with defense investments, Trump referenced his belief that those efforts are actually making NATO stronger by building its capabilities.
Trump also had very aggressive words for Germany on its “horrific” Nord Stream II pipeline with Russia. Those words will not be received well by Vladimir Putin or Angela Merkel, but they are the right ones. Trump also argued that his policy positions on Ukraine, Syria and other concerns are resolutely in conformity with NATO posture. And when it comes to Russia’s role in hacking the 2016 U.S. elections, Trump stated that “I will absolutely, firmly ask the question [of Putin whether he carried out those attacks.]”
It’s hard to see how Trump could have done more to assuage concerns in Britain that he will make concessions to Putin.
4) Trump wants arms control treaty with Putin
Trump made quite clear that he wants to reach some kind of nuclear arms reduction treaty with Russia. Referencing the destructive power of those weapons and the large stockpiles both nations possess, the president said he would speak with Putin towards reducing what he regards as the nuclear threat.
Ultimately though, this was a highly successful press conference for both sides. Trump improved his standing with May following Thursday night’s interview with The Sun, and he doubled down on the special relationship. Both sides will be very happy as the president goes off to meet Queen Elizabeth.
