Burnham meets Trump as UK pushes Ukraine aid and AI rules at UN

Newyork,UPDATED: Sep 22, 2026 13:44 IST

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham faces a major test on the world stage on Tuesday as he prepares for his first meeting with US President Donald Trump and addresses the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Weeks after moving from leading Manchester to heading a G7 country, Burnham is set to press Washington on Ukraine, speak on the Middle East and artificial intelligence, and present Britain as a country seeking a bigger role in global affairs.

Burnham also wants to avoid criticism from the US over the UK's decision to ban trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank. At the same time, he is seeking to reset relations with European neighbours after years of Brexit-related strain, while striking what he called a note of hope despite warning that the world faces "dark clouds of instability".

As he travelled to New York for the annual gathering of world leaders, Burnham said he had authorised limited military support for Saudi Arabia to help repel attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. He said a Royal Air Force plane would refuel Saudi jets involved in "defensive" action to shoot down Houthi missiles.

Burnham said he would discuss with Trump ways to end the on-off conflict between the US and Iran, which has disrupted oil tanker movement through the Strait of Hormuz and pushed up global fuel prices. He said Houthi attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure were worsening the problem and making it harder to deliver on his pledge to ease cost of living pressure on British voters. "We want to see an end to the conflict as quickly as possible and we stand ready to play our part," Burnham said.

He also said he would urge Trump to provide air-defence missiles to Ukraine ahead of another winter of Russian attacks. Burnham told reporters he would try to find "common ground" with Trump, who has described the centre-left UK leader as "a nice guy" but "unfortunately" a liberal. The prime minister said he and Trump had "found a connection" in two phone calls since Burnham took office in July.

In his address to the General Assembly on Tuesday evening, Burnham plans to focus on artificial intelligence, saying it is possible to be "clear-eyed" about both its benefits and risks. He will argue that the UK is well placed to act as an "honest broker" in efforts to reach global agreement on guiding the technology's development because London has good relations with both the US and Europe and "a strong dialogue" with China.

Burnham is also expected to say that Britain is moving on from the turbulent decade since the 2016 decision to leave the European Union. He suggested Brexit marked a point at which the country took a wrong turn, driven by misinformation. His Labour government wants closer ties with the EU without reversing Brexit, though Burnham hinted he could go further by the next national election, due by 2029.

He told reporters that in the past decade Britain had seen "the turbulence that comes when outside actors seek to manipulate, distort facts, influence the British democratic process". "Going into the next decade we need to be clear-eyed about that and stronger and more on the front foot about challenging that," he said. Summing up his message, Burnham added: "We can be hopeful about where we're going. We can draw a line under the last decade and say, This next one's going to be different."

With PTI Inputs

- Ends