Trump and UK PM Burnham meet at UN; Trump calls Chagos deal 'terrible'
In a closely watched sideline meeting, Trump praised Burnham as a 'natural business person' but blasted Britain's Chagos Islands agreement.
What to know
- Trump and Burnham met in a low-key UN basement room rather than the Oval Office, on the sidelines of events at the United Nations.
- Trump was warm toward Burnham personally but openly criticized the UK's Chagos Islands sovereignty deal with Mauritius as 'terrible'.
- Burnham avoided directly defending the Chagos deal, calling it one he 'inherited' and saying work continues toward a resolution.
- A West Bank settlement sanctions announcement and an immigration question, both potential flashpoints, passed without visible friction in the meeting.
“I think the prime minister is going to be looking at [the deal]”
Donald Trump, US President · BBC ↗ · Sep 21
Donald Trump US President
Andy Burnham UK Prime Minister
Ed Miliband UK Foreign SecretaryChris Mason BBC political editor
How it unfolded 1 development · click the chart to see its coverage articlesposts
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BBC's Chris Mason publishes inside account of the meeting
BBC political editor Chris Mason published a first-person account of the encounter, describing Burnham's initial nerves and the dynamics of the exchange, which was then syndicated widely across mirrors and social feeds.
“I do, I think he's a natural business person. We've had a lot of discussions even before this meeting. We've spoken to each other numerous times on the phone. Yeah, I think so, I think so. He gets it. He understands what he has to do.”
— Donald Trump, US President · source -
1 outlet first by BBC, 1d ago · read ↗
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🟠 UPDATE UK Establishes National Centre for Information Defence BBC political editor Chris Mason reports that UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham appeared nervous during an encounter with President Trump, highlighting the explosive nature of their interactions. 📰 https://www. bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm158y 74n5vxo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss # USA…
2 more of the top 3 · 3 posts in this stretch
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https://www. europesays.com/3267655/ Chris Mason: In the room with President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Andy Burnham # DonaldTrump # POTUS # PresidentDonaldTrump # PresidentOfTheUnitedStates # PresidentTrump # trump
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# BBC # News # Politics Chris Mason: In the room with the president and the prime minister
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background
Sanctions on West Bank settlements pass without friction — The Burnham government's decision, announced in the room by Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, to sanction West Bank settlements—a move that angered Israel—did not disrupt the meeting's tone, nor did a question on immigration.
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background
Burnham calls the Chagos deal one he 'inherited' — In a follow-up interview with broadcasters, Burnham called the overall meeting 'very encouraging' but pointedly distanced himself from the Chagos arrangement, saying work would continue to find a resolution.
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background
Trump calls the Chagos Islands deal 'terrible' — Trump criticized the UK's decision to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while renting back the Diego Garcia military base, saying the prime minister would be reviewing it; Burnham replied 'yep'.
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background
Trump says he can 'do business' with Burnham — Asked by BBC's Chris Mason whether Burnham was someone he could work with despite political differences, Trump praised him warmly.
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Trump and Burnham hold sideline meeting at the UN — The two leaders met in a windowless room in the UN basement rather than a more formal venue, with journalists kept waiting outside during the private talks before being let in.