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Donald Trump snubs Keir Starmer, excluding UK Prime Minister from inauguration

In a stark display of diplomatic tension, President-elect Donald Trump has opted not to extend an invitation to UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer for his inauguration on January 20, 2025. The move has raised eyebrows across the political spectrum, highlighting an increasingly frosty relationship between the two leaders.

The snub follows growing controversy surrounding the Labour Party’s involvement in the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Key figures in Starmer’s office, including chief of staff Morgan McSweeney and communications director Matthew Doyle, were reportedly implicated in a campaign to influence the election in favour of Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.

The Trump campaign lodged a formal complaint with the Federal Election Commission, accusing the UK of “blatant foreign interference” in U.S. politics. Elon Musk, a staunch Trump ally, has been outspoken on the issue, taking to social media to criticise Starmer’s actions.”

Keir Starmer sent operatives to America to undermine our election!” Musk stated, echoing the sentiment of many Trump supporters who believe the Labour Party’s involvement was inappropriate and damaging to the US-UK relationship.

While other international leaders, such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Hungarian President Viktor Orbán, have secured invitations to the inauguration, Sir Keir has been left off the guest list. The invitation of figures like Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, further underscores the selective nature of the event.

Downing Street confirmed that Sir Keir would not attend the inauguration, with the UK’s diplomatic representation instead coming from Dame Karen Pierce, the British Ambassador to the United States. Despite this setback, officials have suggested that a separate meeting between Starmer and Trump is being planned in the coming weeks, though the absence from the inauguration itself speaks volumes about the current state of UK-US relations.

This diplomatic row adds to the ongoing strain between Starmer and Trump. While the two leaders met in New York in September and exchanged pleasantries in a phone call in December, recent criticisms from Trump allies have cast a shadow over their interaction.Musk’s public condemnation of Starmer’s leadership, calling him a “tyrannical figure,” only deepens the rift. For the UK, this exclusion comes at a particularly sensitive time, with post-Brexit trade negotiations with the U.S. ongoing.

The lack of an invitation could have long-term consequences for the UK’s ability to secure favourable trade deals with the world’s largest economy. Political analysts warn that the Labour Party’s interference in U.S. elections may have already soured Trump’s view of Starmer, complicating any future talks.

The debate within the UK is equally heated. Critics accuse Starmer of undermining the nation’s relationship with a key ally by allowing Labour figures to meddle in the U.S. election, jeopardising diplomatic ties in the process. Supporters of the Prime Minister, however, downplay the significance of the inauguration snub, claiming that more substantive diplomatic work will be done through other channels.

As the inauguration day approaches, all eyes will be on how Sir Keir Starmer and the UK government manage the fallout from this snub. The upcoming meeting between Starmer and Trump may offer a chance for reconciliation, but the damage to the relationship may already be done. For now, it seems that the special relationship between the UK and the U.S. may be in jeopardy—at least for the time being.

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