It wasn't exactly a glowing farewell. When Donald Trump was asked about Keir Starmer stepping down as Britain's Prime Minister, the US president gave the kind of response that was equal parts backhanded compliment and pointed criticism classic Trump.
Starmer made his resignation official on Monday, June 22, addressing the nation from outside 10 Downing Street and laying out a clear timeline for his exit as Labour leader. In typical Trump fashion, the 80-year-old had already broken the news on his own platform, Truth Social, before Starmer had even finished speaking. But it was his comments at a subsequent White House press conference that really grabbed headlines.
"A Lovely Man" With a Big But
Asked directly about Starmer's resignation and who he'd like to see as the next UK prime minister, Trump didn't hesitate. He said Starmer was "a lovely man" and even described him as "sort of a friend." But the warmth stopped there.
Trump quickly pivoted to what clearly bothered him most: Britain's energy decisions. "You're really messing up the energy," he said, recalling what he had told Starmer directly. "You have windmills all over the place. In the meantime, you have the North Sea oil, and they won't let anybody drill."
For Trump, this wasn't just an abstract policy disagreement it was a matter of common sense. He described the North Sea as "one of the great fields in the world," and pointed out a fact that, in his view, exposes a glaring contradiction in British energy policy.
The Norway Argument
Trump went further, zeroing in on what he sees as a fundamental absurdity. "The UK buys much of its energy you know where? Norway," he said. "And you know where they get their oil? The North Sea."
His argument was simple: Britain sits on a sizeable and arguably superior portion of the same body of water that Norway freely drills, yet London refuses to follow suit all in the name of environmental policy. For Trump, that's not just inefficient, it's economically self-defeating.
NATO and the Diego Garcia Dispute
Beyond energy, Trump also touched on a diplomatic episode that he believes damaged Starmer politically. He referenced a disagreement over NATO and the use of a strategic island widely understood to be Diego Garcia, the British overseas territory that hosts a major US military base.
Trump recalled that Starmer initially said the island couldn't be used, which he described as "a first." When Starmer later reversed course, Trump was equally unimpressed. "He said, 'Well, ultimately, I gave it to you' that was a bad move," Trump said. "That hurt him."
Whether or not that specific episode played a significant role in Starmer's political downfall, Trump clearly saw it as a sign of weak and inconsistent leadership.
A Legacy Overshadowed
Starmer came to power with ambitious goals, but his tenure was marked by turbulence politically at home and diplomatically abroad. His relationship with the Trump White House was always going to be complicated, given the ideological gap between the two leaders. But Trump's comments suggest that even beyond politics, he viewed Starmer as someone who simply didn't make the most of what Britain had to offer.
With Labour now set to begin a leadership contest, the question Trump was asked who should come next remains very much open. He didn't name a preferred successor, but one thing was clear: whoever steps into Downing Street next will be watched closely from Washington.
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