Analysis | Diplomatic Theater In The Round: Lessons from Prime Minister Starmer’s Meeting with President Trump
Dr. Tristen Naylor
Just 24 hours separated U.S. President Donald Trump’s Oval Office meetings with British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The first, with Starmer, was widely regarded as a success: the Prime Minister secured indications that Trump is open to a tariff-free trade agreement with the UK, and Trump received an invitation for an unprecedented second state visit to the UK. In stark contrast, the meeting with Zelensky was a disaster.
The outcomes of both meetings were far from guaranteed, and there are lessons to be learned from each. While the breakdown in diplomacy with Zelensky will likely be held as a textbook example of how not to engage with Trump, it is worth examining Starmer’s success for insights into how future interlocutors can navigate relations with the United States under this administration, not least because Starmer and Trump are so profoundly unlike one another.
Sir Keir “No-Drama” Starmer is of a fundamentally different school of politics than President Trump. Sir Keir cites replacing paper files with digital ones as among his proudest achievements in his previous career as the UK’s chief prosecutor, a far cry from the former reality TV show host with a penchant for branding everything he touches with his own name and the gilt of gold. While Starmer thrives in the background, Trump revels in the spotlight, commanding attention with every move.
Despite the so-called “Special Relationship” between the United States and the UK, it is not out of the ordinary for the countries’ leaders to be out of step with one another. Lyndon B. Johnson’s brash, blunt personality clashed awkwardly with Harold Wilson’s quiet reserve, as was the case with Richard Nixon and Edward Heath. Likewise, Barack Obama’s cool charisma never resonated particularly well with either Gordon Brown’s dour seriousness or David Cameron’s patrician demeanor.
So while it’s not unusual for there to be personality differences between U.S. and UK leaders, the consequences of a potential clash were large as Starmer and Trump met. Sir Keir went to Washington seeking to advance towards a much-needed post-Brexit trade deal with the United States, while at the same time, he joined his European counterparts to bolster U.S. support for Ukraine. Given Trump’s track record of rashly turning on allies and altering U.S. foreign policy over even the smallest perceived slight, Starmer had no room for error.
The positive outcome of Starmer’s visit demonstrates a masterclass in blending both behind-the-scenes diplomacy and public-facing theatrics. In the lead-up to the meeting, Starmer’s team carefully laid the groundwork. Foreign Secretary David Lammy studied how Japan’s late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had successfully navigated Trump’s first term. He began building relationships early, even reaching out to J.D. Vance before he became Trump’s running mate. Likewise, the British Embassy, led by then-Ambassador Karen Pierce, spent months cultivating relationships with key figures in Trump’s orbit. Starmer’s Chief of Staff Morgan McSweeney even made a discreet trip to Washington for talks with Trump’s Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
But what ultimately secured victory was that Starmer stepped out of his comfort zone and into the theatrical limelight. With the prestige flourish of a showman, Starmer pulled a personal letter from King Charles III to hand-deliver to Trump, as if to ape the “but wait, there’s more!” tagline of an infomercial salesman. It was a precision-guided move designed specifically to target the former TV game show host. Moreover, Sir Keir delivered his performance with language borrowed directly from Trump’s characteristic patter, offering superlatives and compliments at every opportunity.
It has become commonplace to describe Donald Trump as an erratic and unpredictable diplomatic actor, and the dust-up with Zelensky in the Oval Office will do nothing to dispel that notion. But Starmer’s success with Trump affirms what both French President Emmanuel Macron and Shinzo Abe figured out in Trump’s first term: the essential behind-the-scenes diplomatic groundwork must be accompanied by a public-facing performance. Despite Trump’s reputation and eccentricities, leaders who adapt their performances to match his are likely to find success. For the next four years, diplomacy with the White House will require both practice and performance — an artful combination of substance and spectacle.
Dr. Tristen Naylor is director of the Oxbridge Diplomatic Academy, a premier ‘centre of excellence’ focused on diplomacy and international affairs based jointly in Oxford and Cambridge and a non-resident fellow with the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy. Dr. Naylor concurrently sits on the advisory boards of The Hauge Journal of International Diplomacy and London Politica, while also serving as the Deputy Director of the G7 and G20 Research Groups.
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