Trump slams ‘terrible’ Chagos deal despite Burnham bond

Burnham and Trump's exchange in first face-to-face interactions

The US president has said he can do business with Burnham, even as the commander in Chief used their first meeting to brand the UK's Chagos deal as "terrible".

The pair met on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, where Burnham said he had "established a good connection" with Trump and they had "taken that further today" in talks covering trade and immigration.

Trump also said that the relationship between the two nations are "more up now" since Burnham took over 10 Downing Street.

Opening the meeting, Burnham told Trump: "You and I have established a good connection in our early discussions and we've taken that further today."

But the warmth didn't extend to the Chagos Islands, as Trump made clear of his opposition to the UK's deal to hand the archipelago to Mauritius while paying to lease back a joint UK-US military base on Diego Garcia, its largest island.

Why the Chagos deal still divides them

The two leaders faced questions shouted from the assembled press pack.

Asked by broadcasters whether the deal is "dead", Burnham said the UK will "work hard" to come to terms with the different sides and is confident to find a resolution "working with our US partners".

Trump, with no ground on the substance, told reporters that he could still work with the prime minister, saying : "Yeah I do, I think he's a natural businessperson.

"We've had a lot of discussions even before this meeting, we've spoken to each other numerous times on the phone.

"Yeah, I think so, he gets it, he understands what he has to do."

A different tone from Downing Street

Burnham expressed to Trump the strain that is on Britain, that they has been through "too much turbulence" in recent times but that it is time to "turn the story" about the country into a positive one.

Trump responded that the UK is a nation with "great patriotism", adding that he thinks it is "waiting for good leadership, waiting for success".

The interaction between the two leaders comes as a markedly warmer assessment than the one on offer earlier this year, when ties between Downing Street and the White House grew increasingly strained.

Burnham and Trump's encounter was their first meeting in person, and it played out in front of the world's press on the margins of the UN's annual gathering of leaders rather than behind closed doors.

That public setting meant every line, warm or barbed, was delivered for cameras rather than in private diplomatic channels, including Trump's insistence that he and Burnham had "spoken to each other numerous times on the phone" long before Tuesday's sit-down.

The meeting, coming in weeks after Trump was scrapping tariffs on Irish whiskey, is another sign of a US-UK trade relationship.

Both leaders are keen to be seen getting along on, even where the Chagos Islands remain a sticking point neither side has resolved.

Burnham's language on Chagos to "work hard" and "confident we can find it", was deliberately open-ended.

Trump's answer, on the other hand, revolved around working with the PM and leaned entirely on the personal relationship rather than the policy dispute.

It leaves the two governments publicly disagreeing on a live defence and sovereignty issue while insisting, just as publicly, that they get on.