Keir Starmer will not “fact-check” Donald Trump during his trip to the US, unlike Emmanuel Macron, according to a cabinet minister.

The prime minister is in Washington DC to meet the US president to discuss American support for Ukraine, after the White House began organising a peace deal without involving Kyiv.

Starmer will be walking along a delicate tightrope as he tries to shore up US security guarantees for Europe amid growing fears around Vladimir Putin’s expansionist goals, while also opposing Trump’s attacks on British ally Ukraine.

French president Emmanuel Macron caused a stir by boldly correcting Trump over his latest Ukraine claims during a visit to the White House on Monday in a moment which soon went viral on social media.

But Starmer – who has promised to act as a “bridge” between the US and Europe – will not be following suit, according to environment secretary Steve Reed.

Asked by reporters at a parlimentary lunch today if the PM would correct Trump, Reed said: “I don’t think it is for the prime minister on any visit to be ‘fact-checking’ on any visit, as you put it, his host, wherever that might be.

“It is for the British prime minister to advocate for the interests of the United Kingdom in a way that is most likely to secure the outcomes that we want.

“So, that is the approach the prime minister will be taking.

“It’s not performative, it’s extremely serious, [it’s] about getting the outcomes we need, whether that’s on trade or security, or any issues that might come up during those kinds of meetings.”

Asked outright if Starmer should “do what Macron did and basically correct Trump in real-time”, the minister said: “It’s very important – we all see the instability that is happening globally – that the UK does everything we can to maintain our international relationships and our international alliances in that time of volatility.”

He pointed to Starmer’s recent decision to hike defence spending from 2.3% of GDP to 2.5% by 2027 – after Trump demanded Europe spends more to protect itself. 

On Monday, Trump claimed the US had provided most of the aid to Ukraine.

But Macron then put a hand on Trump’s arm and said Europe had actually contributed 60% of all aid to the country so far.

The US president claimed: “Europe is loaning the money to Ukraine, so they get their money back.”

But Macron cut in: “No, in fact, to be frank, we paid. We paid 60% of the total effort. Like the US, loans, guarantees, grants, and we provided real money.”

When Trump said Ukraine was going to share minerals with the US, the French president pointed out Moscow is the “aggressor” and so should be compensating the US for its wartime loans rather Ukraine.