Trump suggests Starmer could use military to control UK borders

Donald Trump has suggested Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer could use the military to stop illegal migration, at a news conference during the US president's second state visit to the UK.

The US president said he discussed migration issues with Sir Keir during a meeting at his country residence Chequers.

Trump talked about his policies to secure borders in the US and said the UK faced a similar challenge with migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats.

"You have people coming in and I told the prime minister I would stop it, and it doesn't matter if you call out the military, it doesn't matter what means you use," Trump said.

"It destroys countries from within and we're actually now removing a lot of the people that came into our country."

Standing alongside Trump, the prime minister said illegal migration was an issue his government had been taking "incredibly seriously".

Sir Keir said his government had struck several migrant returns deals with other countries, including France, and had been taking action to crack down on people-smuggling gangs.

The prime minister pointed to the first migrant return under the one-in, one-out deal with France.

"That's an important step forward," Sir Keri said. "But there's no silver bullet here."

More than 30,000 people have crossed the Channel in small boats so far this year.

It is the earliest point in a calendar year this figure has been passed since data on crossings was first reported in 2018.

The rise in crossings is one of the most prominent issues in British politics and has piled pressure on the prime minister to come up with a solution.

There were no divisions between Trump and Starmer on action to tackle illegal migration, as the leaders projected a sense of unity and affection for each other.

The pair touted the "special relationship" between the UK and the US, and announced a new tech deal Trump said would help the allies "dominate" in the world of artificial intelligence (AI).

But in one flashpoint, Trump said he had "a disagreement with the prime minister" on the subject of Palestinian statehood.

The news conference brought to an end Trump's unprecedented second state visit to the UK.

In two days of pomp and pageantry, Trump was hosted at Windsor Castle by King Charles and the Royal Family, and attended a state banquet on Wednesday before his political meeting with the prime minister.