The US Vice President had complained about ‘a random country that hasn’t fought a war in 30 years’
Keir Starmer has responded after US Vice President JD Vance hit out at ‘a random country that hasn’t fought a war in 30 years’.
The Prime Minister was over in Washington DC recently to talk to Vance and US President Donald Trump, but after Starmer’s visit the White House received Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and things didn’t go so well.
Vance made an ’embarrassing’ comment towards Zelenskyy, and to put it mildly the situation deteriorated as the Ukrainian President was asked if he had ever said ‘thank you’ for the aid sent to his country (he had, many times) and was chastised for not wearing a suit.
Other world leaders have spoken in support of the Ukrainian leader, who for three years now has defended his country from Russian aggression, and an emergency summit was held in London over the weekend in which many nations spoke of their commitment to help Ukraine.
Starmer and Zelenskyy embraced outside Downing Street when they met.
Efforts to step up and replace US aid for Ukraine, which the Trump administration has paused today (4 March), were criticised by Vance.
Starmer has been talking about building a ‘coalition of the willing’ to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, including a plan for peacekeeping troops to be sent there after the conflict to ensure war does not break out again.
Vance dismissed Starmer’s plan, telling Fox News the best security guarantee was to ‘give Americans economic upside in the future of Ukraine’ in reference to a deal which would grant the US rights to billions worth of minerals.
He said: “That is a way better security guarantee than 20,000 troops from some random country that hasn’t fought a war in 30 or 40 years.”
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Given that suggestions of security guarantees and peacekeeping troops have come from Starmer, many thought Vance was referring to the UK with his remarks.
Anyone with a cursory knowledge of the past few decades would know that the UK has fought wars in that time, often alongside the US as an ally.
Vance later claimed that he wasn’t talking about either the UK or France, writing in a tweet that it was ‘absurdly dishonest’ to say that he had been.
A spokesperson for the Prime Minister said: “The Prime Minister, and I think this whole country, is full of admiration for all British troops who have served, for instance, in Iraq and Afghanistan, many of whom have lost their lives in the process, and have fought, alongside allies including the United States.
“It’s very clear that their courage and bravery has helped to ensure global security, defend our values, defend our national interests.
“Our focus, once again, is on how we protect our national interests and global security by progressing the discussions to secure a lasting peace for Ukraine.”
Guardian journalist Pippa Crerar says that according to Downing Street, Starmer spoke with Donald Trump again recently and told his cabinet ministers that the US was an ‘indispensable’ ally.
His spokesperson also said: “The PM was clear that such a peace would need to be backed by strong security guarantees, including a coalition of the willing of those ready to defend and guarantee the peace with US backing to deter Putin from returning, and any deal must be based on a strong, sovereign and secure Ukraine.”
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