Trump and Starmer sign a tech deal before holding private talks on tariffs and war

AYLESBURY, England — President Trump on Thursday signed what he called a historic agreement on science and technology with Britain as United Kingdom officials who have gone all out to impress him with royal pageantry during his state visit now try to deliver key trade and business deals that can further their country’s interests.

“The bond between our countries is like no other anywhere in the world,” Trump said at a news conference at Chequers, the 16th century manor house northwest of London that serves as a rural retreat for British leaders. The U.S. and U.K., the American president said, have “done more good for the planet than any other nation in history.”

Joining in the bonhomie, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that “time and time again, it is British and American men and women, side by side, changing the path of history and turning it towards our values, towards freedom, democracy and the rule of law.”

Trump and Starmer held a roundtable with business leaders as they signed the deal. They also had private meetings where the wars in Ukraine and Gaza and tariff rates the U.S. may set on steel imported from Britain were expected to be discussed.

At the signing ceremony for an agreement meant to promote tech investment in both nations, Starmer referred to the American president as “my friend, our friend” and spoke of “leaders who respect each other and leaders who genuinely like each other.”

The British charm offensive continued after King Charles III and Queen Camilla had feted Trump and First Lady Melania Trump at Windsor Castle on Wednesday. The royals used the first of the Trumps’ two-day state visit to offer all the pomp the monarchy can muster: gold-trimmed carriages, scarlet-clad soldiers, artillery salutes, a glittering banquet in a grand ceremonial hall and the biggest military honor guard ever assembled for such a state visit.

Trump has seemed grateful for all the attention — so much so that he has largely stuck to script and offered little of his typical off-the-cuff criticism of hosts.

Even high-profile points of dissent, such as Britain’s impending move to recognize a Palestinian state, stayed cordial. “I have a disagreement with the prime minister on that score,” Trump said, adding that “it’s one of our few disagreements, actually.”

When Trump was asked about his lack of progress in brokering a deal to end Moscow’s war in Ukraine and he acknowledged that Russian President Vladimir Putin has ”let me down,” Starmer escalated the flattery a notch. The prime minister said that he and Trump had discussed how to “decisively increase the pressure on Putin” and that Trump had “led the way here.”

There was disagreement too over immigration policy.

Trump urged Britain to take a harder line and insisted he had made clear to Starmer that when too many people enter illegally, it “destroys countries from within.” When Starmer sharply criticized Hamas, Trump reached over from his lectern and slapped the prime minister on the back in support.

Transatlantic tech partnership

To coincide with the visit, Britain said U.S. companies had pledged $204 billion in investment in the U.K., including $122 billion from investment firm Blackstone in the next decade. Investment will also flow the other way, including almost $30 billion by pharmaceutical firm GSK in the U.S.

At the reception, attended by tech bosses including Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang and U.S. officials such as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Starmer said it was “the biggest investment package of its kind in British history by a country mile.”

U.K. officials say the deal will bring thousands of jobs and billions in investment in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and nuclear energy. It includes a U.K. arm of Stargate, a Trump-backed AI infrastructure project led by OpenAI, and a host of AI data centers around the U.K.

American companies are announcing $42 billion in investment in the U.K.’s AI sector, including $30 billion from Microsoft for projects including Britain’s largest supercomputer.

British officials say they have not agreed to scrap a digital services tax or water down internet regulation to get the deal, some details of which have yet to be announced.

The British government is learning that when it comes to deals with Trump’s team, the devil is in the details. In May, Starmer and Trump struck a trade agreement that reduced U.S. tariffs on Britain’s key auto and aerospace industries.

But talks on slashing duties on steel and aluminum to zero from their current level of 25% have stalled, despite a promise in May that the issue would be settled within weeks.

Price, Lawless and Weissert write for the Associated Press. Price and Lawless reported from England and Weissert from Washington. AP technology writer Matt O’Brien contributed to this report.