Hot words, for now, between Trump and Starm

When it comes to personality and politics, the gap between the Prime Minister and President Donald Trump is wider than the Atlantic Ocean.

But, it whispers: Outwardly, publicly and for now, at least, the language and diplomacy used by both of them about each other appears broadly conventional.

Sir Keir Starmer and Trump spent 45 minutes on the phone over the weekend, with the president telling the BBC that the prime minister had done a “very good job so far”.

Trump acknowledged “he’s a liberal, which is a little different than me,” adding, “I can’t agree with his philosophy,” but i have a very good relationship with him,

And if diplomacy is the art of finding shared interests and inclinations, especially if one or the other or both may be in short supply, then Downing Street and the White House described this first interaction since the inauguration as a case study. : Diplomacy.

Sources in London described the call as “very heated” and “very personal”. This appears to be the bigger picture, and getting to know each other, rather than policy detail, was the objective.

It is, of course, on the details of the policy that disagree.

But for now at least there appears to be an effort on both sides to establish a rapport and for each to size up the other – before a visit to Washington the prime minister is expected to make in the next handful of weeks.

This conference is when two international leaders speak for each side in what is later known as a “read” – how each side interprets how the call went and what was discussed.

These readouts largely overlap, otherwise it would appear that each side was talking about a different call, but the differences of emphasis and language are worth looking for.

As you would expect, they discussed a ceasefire in the Middle East and the release of British-Israeli hostage Emily Demri.

Moreover, as you would expect, both sides noted the President’s love of the royal family, an important and unique diplomatic lever the Prime Minister has at his disposal in the coming years of managing his relationship with the White House.

The President’s condolences to the Prime Minister were also mentioned The recent death of his younger brother, Nick,

But two other sentences, reading each one, struck me the most.

First, a sentence from Downing Street.

A Downing Street spokesman said the two men “discussed trade and the economy, with the Prime Minister setting out how we are deactivating to boost growth”.

A counterintuitive thing to say for a leftist leader – talk about deregulation – but a magic word to use in the company of President Trump.

And this is a consistent thing for the Prime Minister that both he and Chancellor Rachel Reeves have been pushing under various guises over the last few days as they have really leaned into the desire for economic growth.

We’ll hear more about it this week, including a major speech from Reeves on Wednesday and several other announcements before and after that speech.

Second, a punishment from the White House.

A spokesman there said “the two leaders also discussed … how the two countries can promote a fair bilateral economic relationship”.

There is no explicit mention of tariffs, or import taxes, but we know they are threatened. President Trump on America’s friends as well as enemies,

But that sentence, in the context of “fair,” is doing a lot to smile through some bumpy conversations.

Bumpy, however, is for another day, the vibe appears to be. At least for now.