Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Tuesday he would increase annual defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 and target a 3% level last seen just after the Cold War, a signal to U.S. President Donald Trump that Britain can boost Europe's security.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a welcome reception at the Britain's ambassador's residence on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Carl Court/Pool Photo via AP)

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, center, and Palantir Technologies CEO Alex Karp, right, tour Palantir headquarters Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025, in Washington. (/Pool Photo via AP)

Prime Minister Keir Starmer wore a broad smile aboard the plane home from Washington. He landed back in Britain on Friday with the satisfaction of a tricky mission not quite accomplished, but off to a flying start.

Their meeting this afternoon comes a day after Trump hosted UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House Last week, US President Donald Trump made headlines by calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a "dictator" in a social media post.

Keir Starmer is in the air on the way to Washington, where tomorrow he will have his crunch meeting with Donald Trump. The stakes couldn’t possibly be higher.

The Ukrainian president is pushing for the inclusion of security guarantees - something the US president says should be dealt with by Europe.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer leveraged a personal letter from King Charles III to charm Donald Trump during his Washington visit, aiming for a US security commitment for Ukraine while redefining his political image.