Trump stated that he would not be expressing a position on Palestinian statehood at this momen
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday, met the British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at his luxury golf resort in Turnberry, Scotland. They met one day after a new US-EU trade deal was announced. The two leaders discussed the worsening food crisis in Gaza, Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, and issues related to tariff rates. Trump stated that he would not be expressing a position on Palestinian statehood at this moment, but the foremost priority in Gaza presently is to provide food to people, because “you have a lot of starving people”, and Gaza is experiencing “real starvation”.
Trump stated that the United States had contributed $60 million for humanitarian assistance and called on other countries to increase their support, “We’re giving a lot of money and a lot of food, and other nations are now stepping up,” Trump said. He suggested that the U.S. could open additional food aid centers in Gaza, said that “We have to help on a humanitarian basis before we do anything. We have to get the kids fed”. The president accused Hamas of obstructing peace negotiations, describing the group as “very difficult to deal with” and alleging that it had been diverting aid meant for civilians.
When asked whether he agreed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claim that concerns about mass starvation in Gaza are exaggerated, he responded, “I don’t know. Based on what I’ve seen on television, I’d say probably not — those children look very hungry.”
Starmer agreed, saying: “It’s a humanitarian crisis, right? It’s an absolute catastrophe…. I think people in Britain are revolted at seeing what they’re seeing on their screen.”
Although Starmer came to press with a clear goal: to push the U.S. to step up its involvement in addressing what he called a “desperate situation,” as reports of starvation in Gaza mount and Israel’s offensive on the enclave continues. At a prior G7 summit in Canada, Starmer and Trump reached a trade agreement that eliminated U.S. tariffs on British aerospace exports, cut tariffs on auto-related goods from 25% to 10%, and committed the UK to importing a larger quantity of U.S. beef.
