Trump praises May's leadership at meeting
Trump said the first thing he did upon arriving at Chequers on Friday was to offer an apology to May.
President Donald LONDON — Trump on Friday praised the leadership of Theresa May, the prime minister of Brit- ain, and he called the rela- tionship between the two countries “the highest level of special.”
During a news conference at Chequers, the prime minister’s 16th-century official country residence, Trump called May “tough” and “capable,” and said, “I think she’s doing a terrific job, by the way.”
T he president’s com- ments came after a news- paper report earlier in the week quoted him as criticiz- ing May’s approach to Brit- ain’s withdrawal from the European Union, the process known as Brexit.
According to the report, Trump said May’s busi- ness-friendly plan would leave Britain closely tied to the bloc, ultimately killing
the prospect of a trade deal between the United States and Britain. He then proceeded to praise perhaps her most prominent rival, Boris Johnson, who resigned as foreign secretary last week in protest over her Brexit plan.
Trump said the first thing he d id u pon a rriving at Chequers on Friday was to offer an apology to May. But he said May assured him one wasn’t necessary.
“I said, ‘I want to apologize, because I said such good things about you,’” Trump said of May, adding, “She said, ‘Don’t worry ...”
May, for her part, denied she had felt undermined by the article, pivoting repeatedly to her insistence the Brexit plan she is pursuing will, in fact, pave the way for an “ambitious” bilateral trade deal.
During an outdoor news conference after he and May had met for talks, Trump said, “I didn’t criticize the prime minister; I have a lot of respect for the prime minister.”