JAKARTA - British Prime Minister Keir Starmer gu rejected calls for canceling a state visit offer to US President Donald Trump following an extraordinary dispute with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House.
Starmer at a meeting in Washington last week handed over an invitation from the royal family for an unprecedented second state visit in a bid to win Trump's commitment to guarantee US security to protect Ukraine if an agreement to end the war with Russia is reached.
Several British politicians, including the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), called for the invitation to be withdrawn after Trump accused Zelenskyy of not thanking the US for his US support in the war in Ukraine.
When asked if the state visit should be canceled, Starmer criticized the politicism that he thought he wanted to expand the split with Washington at a time when Europe faced a "real moment of fragility".
"I will not be distracted by SNPs or other parties trying to increase rhetoric without really appreciating the most important thing at stake here, we are discussing peace in Europe," Starmer told the BBC.
Starmer, unlike some leaders in Europe, is trying to avoid criticism of Trump despite provocations against everything from Gaza to Ukraine and possible tariffs.
The invitation from King Charle to be handed over to Trump by Starmer in the Oval room of the White House will make the US president the first elected political leader in modern times to receive two state visits from the British king.
State visits are major ceremonial events full of splendor and processions and usually include taking trains and a luxurious state dinner.
During the reign of the late Queen Elizabeth, only three US presidents received full state visits: Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Trump.
Trump, whose mother is from Scotland, often talks about his admiration for the British royal family.
Although aristocrats are meant to be apolitical, they are often deployed to try to secure good relations with world leaders.
Trump's first state visit in June 2019 lasted three days, where he attended a state dinner and drank tea with Charles, who was then the heir to the throne.
SNP leader John Swinney said on Sunday it was difficult to believe the invitation to Trump was still in effect.
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Opposition lawmaker from the Conservative Party, Alicia Kearns, who previously served as chairman of the parliament's foreign affairs committee, also said the visit should be discontinued until the US offers to provide security guarantees to Ukraine.
Petitions calling for the cancellation of the invitation have signed nearly 70,000 signatures and some British newspapers that are usually right-wing also criticized Trump since his dispute with Zelenskyy.
The Telegraph said the Ukrainian president had been "intimidated inappropriately and embarrassingly".
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