REPORTER: US President Donald Trump has wrapped up a second state visit to the UK. During his trip, he and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed a multi-billion-dollar tech investment agreement. Now back in Washington, Trump’s getting ready for a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday. John Van Trieste has this report.
US President Donald Trump prepares to step back onto US soil after a state visit to the UK.
This, his second state visit to the UK, could add new energy to an old alliance amid differences on foreign policy and US tariffs on British steel.
In the presence of US and UK business leaders, Trump and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer have signed a deal that will spur US$205 billion in US tech investment into the UK.
And that’s just part of a bigger string of deals worth a quarter of a trillion pounds, or roughly US$340 billion.
There’s nuclear energy, there’s quantum computing, and then, there’s AI.
Donald Trump (US PRESIDENT):
So we're taking the next logical step with a historic agreement on science and technology partnerships, and this will create new government academic and private sector cooperation in areas such as AI, which is taking over the world.
Starmer—and other British officials—are looking at the deal with optimism.
Keir Starmer (UK PRIME MINISTER):
And just look at we're achieving today together the deals and investment that you're announcing today break all records. What a day. £250 billion flowing both ways across the Atlantic. It is the biggest investment package of its kind in British history by a country mile.
But there was other business to attend to amid the mutual congratulations.
During the pomp-filled visit, the two leaders talked energy, migration, Ukraine, Gaza and US tariffs.
And Trump also had an announcement to make about US-China ties, specifically the tussle over TikTok.
Trump’s administration had threatened to ban the app unless its Chinese owner ByteDance sells to a US owner.
Donald Trump (US PRESIDENT):
So what we're doing, and we're speaking to President Xi on Friday to see if we can finalize something on TikTok because there is tremendous value, and I hate to give away value, but I like TikTok. It helped get me elected.
Despite protests in London against Trump’s visit, officially, at least, ties between the US and UK seem to be warming, even in the era of “America First.”
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