JD Vance says US and UK ‘working very hard’ on trade deal and will come to a ‘great agreement’
US vice president JD Vance has said America and the UK are “working very hard” on a trade deal and he believes they will reach a “great agreement”.
Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on imports to the United States several weeks ago, rocking the world economy, sending stock prices tumbling and sparking fears of a global recession.
Since then, Mr Trump has rowed back on those tariffs, reducing the rate paid on imports from most countries to 10% and, on Saturday, exempting electronics such as smartphones and laptops from the levy – including the 145% charge on imports from China.
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The UK was already going to face a blanket 10% duty before Mr Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” announcement of worldwide tariff increases.
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The UK government has been hopeful of a deal to exempt the UK from Mr Trump’s tariffs, and in an interview with the website UnHerd on Tuesday, Mr Vance said he was optimistic that both sides could come to a mutually beneficial agreement.
“We’re certainly working very hard with Keir Starmer’s government,” Mr Vance said.
“The president really loves the United Kingdom. He loved the Queen. He admires and loves the King. It is a very important relationship. And he’s a businessman and has a number of important business relationships in [Britain]. But I think it’s much deeper than that.
“There’s a real cultural affinity. And, of course, fundamentally, America is an Anglo country.
“I think there’s a good chance that, yes, we’ll come to a great agreement that’s in the best interest of both countries.”
Mr Vance said the “reciprocal relationship” between the US and UK gives Britain a more advantageous position than other European countries when it comes to negotiating new trade arrangements, adding: “While we love the Germans, they are heavily dependent on exporting to the United States but are pretty tough on a lot of American businesses that would like to export into Germany.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves will aim to continue negotiations for an economic deal with the US later this month when she travels to Washington to attend the International Monetary Fund’s spring meetings with other finance ministers.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, left, with Donald Trump, centre, and JD Vance in the Oval Office in February. Pic: Reuters
Vance criticises Europe on defence
During the interview, where he spoke on the phone from the West Wing of the White House, Mr Vance also touched on the apparent shift in the US and Europe’s security relationship.
He said: “The reality is – it’s blunt to say it, but it’s also true – that Europe’s entire security infrastructure, for my entire life, has been subsidised by the United States of America.”
Mr Vance said that as recently as a quarter-century ago Europe had “many vibrant militaries, at least militaries that could defend their own homelands”, but nowadays he believes “most European nations don’t have militaries that can provide for their reasonable defence”.
The vice president added: “The British are an obvious exception, the French are an obvious exception, the Poles are an obvious exception. But in some ways, they’re the exceptions that prove the rule, that European leaders have radically underinvested in security, and that has to change.”
Mr Vance said his message to Europe was the same one as that shared by then-French president General Charles de Gaulle during the height of the Cold War.
The US vice president said General de Gaulle “loved the United States of America, but (he) recognised what I certainly recognise, that it’s not in Europe’s interest, and it’s not in America’s interest, for Europe to be a permanent security vassal of the United States”.
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Mr Vance also suggested he believes a strong Europe would better for America.
“I don’t think that Europe being more independent is bad for the United States – it’s good for the United States. Just going back through history, I think – frankly – the British and the French were certainly right in their disagreements with Eisenhower about the Suez Canal,” he said.
Mr Vance added: “I think a lot of European nations were right about our invasion of Iraq. And frankly, if the Europeans had been a little more independent, and a little more willing to stand up, then maybe we could have saved the entire world from the strategic disaster that was the American-led invasion of Iraq.”
Asked about Mr Trump’s tariff regime and its impact on the stock market, Mr Vance said: “Any implementation of a new system is fundamentally going to make financial markets jittery.
“The president has been very consistent that this is a long-term play… Now, of course, you have to be responsive to what the business community is telling you, what workers are telling you, what bond markets are telling you. These are all variables that we have to be responsive to…. (to) make the policy successful”.
An end to the longest US government shutdown in history is one step closer after Senate Democrats broke with their party to strike a deal with the Republicans.
Senators backed by 60 votes to 40 legislation to end the impasse, though it still needs approval from the House of Representatives – and sign-off by President Donald Trump.
He has indicated he is happy with the agreement, though, which would restore funding for federal agencies that have gone without since 1 October.
It would also prevent any further layoffs until 30 January, but does not satisfy Democrat demands regarding health care insurance for millions of Americans.
Attractions across the US have been closed. Pic: AP
Health care was at the heart of the dispute that led to the shutdown.
The Democrats had refused to support a Republican budget plan unless tax credits that made medical insurance cheaper for millions of people were renewed.
The willingness of eight moderate Democrats to break the Senate deadlock without that guarantee has provoked fury among many in the party.
Some are now calling on Senate Minority Chuck Schumer to be replaced because he is “no longer effective”.
California Governor Gavin Newsom – regarded as a contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination – said: “Pathetic. This isn’t a deal. It’s surrender.”
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The shutdown has caused extensive travel disruption. Pic: Reuters
On Monday morning, Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune had urged politicians to work together to break a stalemate that had lasted for more than 40 days.
He said: “The American people have suffered for long enough. Let’s not pointlessly drag this bill out.”
The shutdown began on 1 October – with 670,000 federal government employees furloughed or left with no choice but to work without pay.
SNAP, a food aid programme used by 42 million Americans, has been frozen – with thousands of flights cancelled at dozens of major airports.
Mr Trump has told air traffic controllers to get back to work, threatening anyone who doesn’t with “docked” pay.
The funding package now heading to the House of Representatives only lasts through to 30 January, making it a relatively short-term solution that will require further negotiation.
Donald Trump has threatened to sue the BBC for $1bn over edits the organisation made last year to one of his speeches.
The organisation has been engulfed in a crisis, forced to apologise on Monday after two of its most senior figures, including the director-general, resigned on Sunday night.
The defamation claim centres around a BBC Panorama documentary, which aired October 2024 and showed an edited speech made by Mr Trump before the attack on the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, in which he appeared to tell his supporters he was going to walk with them to the US Capitol and “fight like hell”.
In a letter dated 9 November, Florida-based lawyer Alejandro Brito set the BBC a deadline of 10pm UK time on Friday to respond, outlining three demands:
• Issue a “full and fair retraction” of the documentary
• Apologise immediately
• “Appropriately compensate” the US president
He told the BBC it needed to “comply” or face being sued for $1bn.
A BBC spokesperson said: “We will review the letter and respond directly in due course.”
‘Error of judgement’
On Monday, BBC chairman Samir Shah, one of the most senior figures still standing, apologised for the “error of judgement” in editing the video.
In a letter to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee of MPs, Mr Shah said Mr Trump’s speech was edited in a way that gave “the impression of a direct call for violent action”.
“The BBC would like to apologise for that error of judgement,” he added.
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Director-general and head of BBC News resign
Concerns about the edited speech first came to light in a leaked memo from Michael Prescott, a former journalist and independent adviser to the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and Standards Board.
As a result, BBC director-general Tim Davie and BBC News chief Deborah Turness announced their resignations on Sunday evening, saying in emails to staff that mistakes had been made.
Mr Davie will address an all-staff meeting on Tuesday. While on her way into the Broadcasting House on Monday morning, Ms Turness defended the corporation, rejecting accusations of institutional bias.
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A spokesperson for the prime minister told reporters on Monday that the BBC wasn’t corrupt or institutionally biased.
Instead, they said it had a “vital role” to play in the modern age, but needed to ensure it acted “to maintain trust and correct mistakes quickly when they occur”.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves also stood by the corporation, but said that “lessons do need to be learned”.
‘Nothing but an apology’
Veteran broadcaster and former BBC presenter Jonathan Dimbleby told Sky News, however, that the organisation owed the US president nothing more than an apology.
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‘These are very serious times for the BBC’
But former legal correspondent for the BBC Joshua Rozenberg also told Sky News that he believed the corporation would “very likely” consider settling with Trump.
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Mr Trump’s attack on the BBC is the latest in a long string of multibillion-dollar battles he’s engaged with various media institutions.
Former al Qaeda commander and now Syrian leader Ahmed al Sharaa has been welcomed by Donald Trump to the White House.
It was the first visit to the Oval Office by a Syrian head of state since the country gained independence in 1946.
Mr Sharaa, 43, who once had a $10m US bounty on his head, led rebel forces that overthrew dictator Bashar al-Assad last December, and was named interim leader in January.
The US president called Mr al Sharaa a “very strong leader” after their meeting and suggested the US would work to help the country succeed.
“He comes from a very tough place,” Mr Trump said, adding Mr al Sharaa is a “tough guy” and “I like him”.
Mr Sharra has “had a rough past”, but added, “we’ve all had a rough past”, he added.
Trump shared a picture of the two leaders on social media. Pic: Truth Social
Mr Trump has become one of the Syrian president’s more enthusiastic backers, considering the nation of strategic importance.
He didn’t provide any policy details about the meeting, but said “we’ll do everything we can to make Syria successful because that’s part of the Middle East”.
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Trump and al Sharaa appeared to get on well. Pics: AP
‘What the hell are we doing?’
Mr al Sharaa was greeted by a cheering crowd of supporters, some waving Syrian flags, upon his arrival on Monday.
But not everyone was overjoyed at the historic meeting.
Far-right activist Laura Loomer, a self-proclaimed “Islamophobe” who wields influence in Mr Trump’s MAGA movement, posted on X that Mr al Sharaa was “the ISIS ‘President’ of Syria”.
“What the hell are we doing?” she wrote of his White House visit.
Days before the meeting, Mr Trump told reporters “a lot of progress has been made” on Syria and Mr al Sharaa was “doing a very good job”.
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al Sharaa waves as he greets supporters outside the White House. Pics: AP
Last week, the US voted to lift a series of sanctions on the Syrian president and members of his government.
Mr al Sharaa is hoping for a permanent repeal of sanctions placed on Syria for allegations of human rights abuses by Assad’s government and security forces – but congressional action would be needed for a permanent repeal.
Mr Trump and Mr al Sharaa first met in May in Saudi Arabia. At the time, the US president described Mr al Sharaa as a “young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past, very strong past. Fighter”.
Monday’s meeting came after Syria launched raids against Islamic State cells.
It was the first official encounter between the US and Syria since 2000, when then president Bill Clinton met Hafez Assad.
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