LONDON — Prime Minister Keir Starmer told a parliamentary committee on Monday that he will remain focused on British national interests despite recent criticism from President Donald Trump. "I'm utterly focused on what is in the best interests of our country and I am unapologetic about that," Starmer said.

The prime minister's comments came after Trump publicly criticized him and reposted a sketch from the inaugural episode of Saturday Night Live UK that portrayed Starmer as afraid of the American president. "Notwithstanding the pressure that comes from elsewhere, I will remain laser-focused on what is in the British national interest," Starmer said at the committee meeting.

The tensions between the two leaders have developed over several weeks. Trump criticized Starmer for not joining the Iran war in the period before sharing the Saturday Night Live UK sketch. The president later made direct personal attacks on the prime minister. "He is no Winston Churchill," Trump said about Starmer. "I am not happy with the man I called a friend last year," Trump said.

The dispute centers on military cooperation between the two nations. Starmer initially delayed granting permission for American bombers to launch defensive strikes against Iran from UK bases. "Any strikes must have a 'lawful basis'," said Starmer. He later allowed American bombers to use UK bases to launch defensive strikes aimed at defending the Strait of Hormuz.

James Schneider, Labour's former director of communications under Jeremy Corbyn, said "Starmer's approach to Trump has followed a familiar script in British politics: flattery, acquiescence, and a kind of diplomatic sane-washing." He added that "the danger now is that this balancing act collapses. If Starmer continues to tether Britain to Trump's escalation, the consequences won't just be geopolitical — they'll be felt in rising costs and growing political fragility at home."

The relationship between the two countries remains complicated by economic and security ties. The United States is the United Kingdom's largest trading partner by country. The United Kingdom relies on American intelligence and American technical know-how for its nuclear weapons program, while the United States uses military bases in Britain and throughout Europe to launch military sorties over the Middle East.

In February 2025, Starmer visited Washington and presented Trump with a signed state-visit invitation from King Charles III. Trump's net favorability in the United Kingdom is minus 65, according to YouGov. Starmer's net favorability is minus 48, one of the worst since YouGov began tracking the metric in the 1970s.