The key facts

  • Starmer called for creating a “common security system” for Europe, analogous to the common market, with the UK at its centre
  • According to him, the United States has made it definitively clear that it will no longer “fund” European security
  • He received honorary lifetime membership of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce

Speech in Dublin

Former UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke on 31 October at a dinner of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce (BICC) at Dublin City Hall, where he travelled to receive the organisation's honorary lifetime membership. This was reported by BBC News citing the Press Association.

“Nothing will go back to the way it was”

The central thesis of his speech: the changes in Europe's defence relationship with the United States are “a permanent change in the state of affairs, not an anomaly of the Trump presidency.” Starmer warned that “nothing will go back to the way it was before,” because the United States has made clear that it will no longer “fund” the security of its European allies. “Europe has been caught off guard twice — failing to anticipate and prepare for predictable events,” he said, naming Russia's attack on Ukraine, which exposed Europe's long-standing defence weaknesses, and Trump's declaration that he would refuse to pay for European security.

A common security system and Britain's role

According to Starmer, rising defence spending is only part of the answer, and the task “goes far beyond that”: Europe needs “pan-European cooperation and coordination in defence and security — a common security system to the same degree as the common market,” with the United Kingdom at its centre. He noted that the EU is changing in response to these challenges, but “it cannot be the EU alone when the periphery of Europe is the core of its defence.” At the same time, the former prime minister stressed that his words do not mean relations with the United States have ceased to matter: the military and intelligence alliance between London and Washington is “far too strong for that.”

Context of relations with Trump

BBC recalls the background: in July, Starmer said he would “stay in touch” with Trump after leaving the post of prime minister, and in the first months his team called their relationship one of the main achievements of his premiership. However, Trump later mocked Starmer, saying he was “no Winston Churchill,” in a dispute over the refusal to allow British bases to be used for the initial US and Israeli strikes on Iran, and repeated his criticism of the UK's response to the conflict. Leaving Downing Street, Starmer confirmed that Trump had wished him luck and that they would “stay in touch.”

Sir Keir Starmer speaking in front of a union jack flag. It is a head and shoulders shot - he is wearing a white shirt, dark black suit and a dark tie.Image source, EPA
Image caption,

Sir Keir Starmer was speaking at a dinner of the the British Irish Chamber of Commerce in Dublin

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and US President Donald Trump shake hands at a joint press conference in the East Room at the White House in February 2025Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump at a press conference in the White House

Sir Keir Starmer speaking in front of a union jack flag. It is a head and shoulders shot - he is wearing a white shirt, dark black suit and a dark tie.Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump are sat down in white chairs and looking at each other. There is a miniature United States flag between them on a wooden table and a miniature blue flag with the Nato emblem next to Trump's left arm on the table. Both men are wearing dark coloured suits, white shirts and ties.Sir Keir Starmer and Simon Harris. They are both smiling in celebration. Starmer has grey hair, wearing a dark blazer and white shirt. Harris has grey hair, wearing a navy blazer and white shirt.Keir Starmer looks to camera and stands in front of UK flags as he speaksSoldiers stand during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's visit to a military training area to find out about the training of Ukrainian soldiers on the “Patriot” anti-aircraft missile system, at an undisclosed location, in Germany, June 11, 2024.