Donald Trump appeared to flirt with tariffs on British imports Monday — then insisted it can all “be worked out” with the country’s “very nice” Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Trump has unveiled sweeping tariffs on goods imported from Canada, Mexico, and China which are due to kick in this week — and he made clear over the weekend that the European Union is also in his sights.
But Britain appears to be getting some grace — for now.
Asked by the BBC in a stop at the Joint Base Andrews air force facility whether the U.K. could be hit with tariffs, Trump said: “It might happen with that, but it will definitely happen with the European Union.”
Taking aim at the EU, before pivoting back to the U.K., Trump said: “They don’t take our cars, they don’t take our farm products. They take almost nothing, and we take everything from the millions of cars, tremendous amounts of food and farm products.
“So the U.K. is way out of line, and we’ll see the U.K., but [the] European Union is really out of line.”
Trump then went on to talk up a warm relationship with Britain’s Labour Prime Minister Starmer, who has held a series of calls with Trump and repeatedly stressed the so-called “special relationship” between the two countries — despite a series of potential flashpoints.
“U.K. is out of line,” Trump repeated. “But I’m sure that one, I think that one, can be worked out. Prime Minister Starmer has been very nice. We’ve had a couple of meetings, we’ve had numerous phone calls, we’re getting along very well, and we’ll see whether or not we can balance out our budget with the European Union.”
The EU has already warned Trump the bloc will retaliate if he imposes tariffs on EU goods.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive body, said Sunday it “regrets” Trump’s decision to impose blanket tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China on Saturday.
“Our trade and investment relationship with the U.S. is the biggest in the world. There is a lot at stake,” a Commission spokesperson said. “Tariffs create unnecessary economic disruption and drive inflation. They are hurtful to all sides.”
Zia Weise contributed to this report.
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