Sir Keir Starmer has said “more needs to be done to protect” the Arctic region and agreed with Donald Trump on the “need to deter an increasingly aggressive Russia in the High North” during his second call in two days with the US president, Downing Street has said.
Amid a flurry of diplomatic activity, Sir Keir spoke to Mr Trump about “Euro-Atlantic security” in the wake of fears the US president may use military force to take Greenland, having captured Venezuela’s Nicola Maduro.
Mr Trump has repeatedly said that the US needs Greenland, the largest island in the Arctic, as “Greenland is very important for the national security of the United States, Europe, and other parts of the free world”.
US officials have said they could use “military means” to “acquire” the semi-autonomous Danish territory.
This is despite Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warning that NATO would be under threat in the event of a US invasion of the territory.
Sir Keir has said previously said that decisions about Greenland‘s future should be made solely by its people and Denmark.
On Wednesday, he reiterated that view to Mr Trump in a call described by Downing Street sources as “positive” and “friendly”.
But in a second conversation on Thursday, the two leaders discussed deterring Russia in the High North, which includes Greenland.
A statement from Downing Street about the call said: “The leaders discussed Euro-Atlantic security and agreed on the need to deter an increasingly aggressive Russia in the High North.
“European Allies had stepped up in recent months to defend Euro-Atlantic interests, but more could be done to protect the area, the Prime Minister said.
“The leaders looked forward to speaking again soon.”
It came as Sir Keir also spoke to NATO chief Mark Rutte about the “High North”.
In a Downing Street statement about Sir Keir’s call with Mr Rutte, No 10 said: “They agreed that more needed to be done to deter Russia in the High North and welcomed discussions on how Allies could further protect the region from increasing Russian threats.”
Sir Keir also spoke to the Danish prime minister, reiterating his position that Britain “stood” with Denmark.
Reuters reported that Sir Keir told Ms Frederickson that Britain stood with Denmark in its defence of Greenland, and the leaders also discussed Ukraine.
Sir Keir had been criticised by Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch in the last few days for failing to talk to the US president after the US carried out its raid to seize Mr Maduro and subsequent seizure of two oil tankers – one of which involved UK forces in the North Atlantic.
In a joint statement, widely seen as a message to the US, the UK and European allies vowed earlier this week that they would “not stop defending” Greenland’s territorial integrity.
Sir Keir has also faced pressure to rule out any US use of UK bases to support an attack on Greenland.
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Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy was set to underline the closeness of the “special relationship” between the UK and the US during a meeting with US vice president JD Vance in Washington on Thursday.
Mr Lammy’s visit to the US marks the 250th anniversary of America’s declaration of independence from Britain.
Speaking at the White House earlier on Thursday, Mr Vance said the US president’s words on Greenland should be taken seriously.
“Greenland is really important not just to America’s missile defence, but to the world’s missile defence,” the vice president said.
“So what we’re asking our European friends to do is to take the security of that landmass more seriously, because if they’re not, the United States is going to have to do something about it.
“What that is, I’ll leave that to the president as we continue to engage in diplomacy with our European friends and everybody on this particular topic.”
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Danish and Greenland envoys to Washington have been involved in a furious effort over the last few days to urge key Trump administration officials to step back from Mr Trump’s call for a takeover of the strategic island.
Denmark’s ambassador to the US, Jesper Moller Sorensen, and Jacob Isbosethsen, Greenland’s chief representative to Washington, met on Thursday with White House National Security Council officials, Associated Press reported.
Sky News understands the pair also met with White House officials to seek a better understanding of US policy on Greenland but sources declined to say who from the Trump Administration participated in the discussions.
While military force was one option to achieve Mr Trump’s stated aim, the purchase of the territory is another, US officals have said, and US secretary of state Marco Rubio is expected to meet with Danish officials next week in Washington.
