British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he would act in the country's interest, whatever the "noise", when asked about U.S. President Donald Trump saying he was strongly considering pulling the United States out of NATO.

"Whatever the pressure on me and others, whatever the noise, I'm going to act in the British national interest in the decisions that I make," Starmer told reporters on Wednesday (April 1).

At the press conference aimed at easing public concern over rising energy costs, Starmer said the impact of the war would "define us for a generation" and could be similar to the rise in energy prices in the 1970s.

"We want to be more ambitious, closer economic cooperation, closer security cooperation, a partnership that recognises our shared values, our shared interest and our shared future" with the EU, Starmer told reporters.

Trump on Tuesday (March 31) again criticised European countries that refused to join his war against Iran, calling out Britain and France, as transatlantic relations deteriorated from the conflict that has driven up energy prices.

The president warned Britain and other countries to "start learning how to fight for yourself" because the U.S. "won't be there to help you anymore".

Britain's Labour government has sought a reset with the EU and Starmer said it was clear that the Brexit deal agreed by the previous Conservative administration in 2020 had caused "deep damage to our economy".

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

SHOWS: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (APRIL 1, 2026) (UK POOL - Broadcast: No use UK. Digital: No use UK, except UK newspapers)

1. BRITAIN'S PRIME MINISTER KEIR STARMER ARRIVING FOR PRESS CONFERENCE

2. (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRITAIN'S PRIME MINISTER, KEIR STARMER, SAYING: (IN RESPONSE TO QUESTION ABOUT U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SAYING HE WAS CONSIDERING PULLING OUT OF NATO)

"Firstly, NATO is the single most effective military alliance the world has ever seen, and it has kept us safe for many decades and we are fully committed to NATO. Secondly, that whatever the pressure on me and others, whatever the noise, I'm going to act in the British national interest in all the decisions that I make. And that's why I've been absolutely clear that this is not our war or we are not going to get dragged into it."

3. JOURNALISTS LISTENING TO STARMER

4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRITAIN'S PRIME MINISTER, KEIR STARMER, SAYING:

"It is increasingly clear that as the world continues down this volatile path. Our long term national interest requires closer partnership with our allies in Europe and with the European Union. Now, we have made progress on this front on agriculture, electricity, emissions trading and more."

5. PRESS CONFERENCE ONGOING

6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRITAIN'S PRIME MINISTER, KEIR STARMER, SAYING:

"It's in our interest to have a strong relationship with the U.S. and with Europe. But I do think that when it comes to defence and security, energy emissions and the economy, we need a stronger relationship with Europe. I actually think that will help strengthen our relationship with the U.S., because successive presidents have said that Europe needs to do more on the defence and security. I've long argued that with European colleagues that we should be doing more. And that's not just, for example, on defence spend, although it is on defence spend, but it's also on how we spend, how we collaborate, cooperate."

7. JOURNALISTS LISTENING TO STARMER

8. (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRITAIN'S PRIME MINISTER, KEIR STARMER, SAYING:

"But I do think that we should strengthen our cooperation on defence, security, energy emissions and the economy. And on the economy, the steps we've taken so far have been in relation to the single market. And I'm ambitious that we can do more in relation to the single market because I think that's hugely in our economic interests. Obviously, this is a matter of negotiation and discussion with the EU. But the summit we have this year will not just be a stock take summit where we look at actually the ten strands that we put in place last year, it will be a deliberate ambition on our part to go further than that."

9. (MUTE) JOURNALISTS AT END OF PRESS CONFERENCE