Great Britain and the European Union have drafted a proposed joint statement that commits the UK and EU to rejecting Donald Trump’s most controversial policies, reports telegraph.co.uk.
On the eve of Mr Trump’s 100 days in office, the Government presented Europe with a draft document that insisted on Ukraine’s territorial integrity. It also called for support for the Paris climate agreement and free trade.
Officials drafted the statement as a “geopolitical preamble” to mark Sir Keir Starmer’s reset in relations with Brussels at a summit in London next month. It is the most significant political declaration on Europe since Brexit.
While it does not directly name the US president or his country, the proposed wording commits the UK and EU not to follow some of his major policies.
“We reaffirmed our continued support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders,” British officials wrote.
Mr Trump has said he is willing to recognise Russia’s sovereignty over Crimea, which it illegally annexed in 2014, as a price to end the war in Ukraine.
The joint document commits Britain and Brussels to the Paris climate agreement and free trade, both of which Mr Trump has publicly objected to while in office.
“We confirmed our shared principles of maintaining global economic stability and our mutual commitment to free and open trade,” the draft noted, adding that the sides would “continue working on how we can mitigate the impact of fluctuations in the global economic order.”
It also commits both sides to “multilateralism”.
“We remain committed to keeping the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5C within reach,” it added.
The declaration will be the centrepiece of Britain and Brussels’ reset in relations.
Sir Keir is hoping to unveil new defence and trade deals with the bloc when he hosts Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa, the European Commission and Council presidents, in London on May 19.
The reset will also feature deals guaranteeing the rights of European fishermen in British waters for multiple years and a slimmed-down youth mobility scheme.
Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has brought both the EU and UK closer together and been credited with the most positive relations between both sides since the Brexit vote in 2016.
The Telegraph understands that Britain wanted to avoid calling the new document a “political declaration”. Nick Thomas Symonds, the Brexit minister, is believed to hold concerns that the language is too similar to that used by Theresa May and Boris Johnson to set out their post-Brexit ambitions.
The statement risks damaging the Prime Minister’s attempt to act as a bridge between the Americans and Europeans, and will fuel criticism that Sir Keir Starmer is choosing Europe over the US.
