Is Donald Trump gearing up to ambush Andy Burnham at their first meeting? The pair are expected to sit down for the first time at the UN General Assembly in a few weeks – and the stakes are not inconsiderable. Burnham will be keen to take on Keir Starmer’s mantle of Ukraine’s defender – if not of Trump whisperer – and if he needs to dangle a little North Sea oil drilling to get the US President to play nice, so be it. Nice, simple international diplomacy with the bare minimum of drama. Right?
Well, maybe – because of late the Trump administration has been a little less studiously neutral than usual about a pretty contentious issue – the Falkland Islands. Internal memos have suggested the US position on the Islands could be reviewed – especially in light of Trump still being cross with us for not running to his heel when he went to bomb Iran, and pre-emptively mad at us for not spending enough on defence.
“I always review every position – that’s just one of many,” Trump said on Monday when he was asked about the Falklands directly.
And right on cue, Trump’s diminutive, chainsaw wielding buddy Javier Milei – Argentina’s President – is doing a TV address on the subject of the islands on Thursday night. Trump has been doing all sorts of things to try and prop up Milei – a kindred spirit. That includes importing a ton of Argentine beef, much to the annoyance of American cattle herders.
Perhaps this is another gift from Trump to Milei – backing him in a fight that he probably can’t win, but could make him look pretty badass to the people of Argentina. Trump, after all, isn’t at all bothered about maintaining relations with America’s traditional allies. And he’s considerably more bothered about forging new alliances within his bubble of the Americas.
And last night, Trump made an even more straightforward threat. Asked whether he’d come to Britain’s aid if the Islands were under threat from Argentina, he said: “I was there when they had the first war, that was a long time ago… you comported yourself very well, took it back very shortly. But it is a long way away.
“So, your country’s not doing well. Don’t forget you get a big percentage of your oil from the Strait of Hormuz and you weren’t there to help me. Your country was not there to help me.”
On the other hand… it wouldn’t be such a bad thing for Burnham either. He would get to defend Britain’s claim to the Falklands against an Argentinian madman and a US President that pretty much everyone in the UK loathes. There’s really no downside. So maybe…bring it on?
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