United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer and France's President Emmanuel Macron have been meeting advisors ahead of important and difficult visits to the United States in the coming days, during which they will try to rebuild Europe's fast-eroding relationship with its traditional ally.

In the aftermath of comments from US President Donald Trump that suggested he no longer sees Europe as the close natural ally it once was, both Starmer and Macron will want to repair damage already done, and avoid triggering new rifts.

Starmer, who arrives in the US on Thursday, has already said he will tell Trump he plans to meet one of his major demands; that European nations spend more on their defense and rely less on Washington to protect them.

Starmer took that message to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Finland's President Alexander Stubb on the weekend, with the Associated Press quoting his spokesperson as saying he told them "Europe must step up for the good of collective European security".

The spokesperson said Starmer will also want to mention to Trump that any peace deal reached to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict is agreed carefully, and with safeguards in place to ensure fighting cannot easily restart.

Macron, who arrives in Washington on Monday will carry similar messages, and try to leverage his already close relationship with Trump, that began early in his first term in office.

Reuters said Macron wants to remind Trump that a peace deal to end the conflict would need to be fair to Ukraine, because one that is too generous to Russia would make the US look weak on the world stage.

Macron wrote on social media ahead of his trip: "I will tell him: deep down you cannot be weak in the face of (President Putin). It's not you, it's not what you're made of, and it's not in your interests."

Starmer and Macron will arrive in the US against the backdrop of Trump having called Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky a "dictator", and after he said Ukraine started the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The assertions are in marked contrast to pro-Ukraine stances previously adopted by the US and set up a difficult scenario in which Ukraine's European neighbors may start to weigh up whether it is in their best interests to also shift their stances.

Starmer and Macron will also be eager to talk to Trump about US trade policy, after the president said he will introduce hefty tariffs on items Europe exports to the US.

Philip Golub, a professor in international relations at the American University in Paris, told Reuters that Trump's decisions and announcements during his first few days in office have clearly alarmed many European nations.

"They could not have expected that somehow within the United States would emerge this ultra-nationalist coalition of forces that would actually challenge Europe's voice in world affairs in such a stark and strong way," he said.

Trump described Macron as "a friend of mine" and Starmer as "a very nice guy" during a Fox News podcast on Friday, suggesting he may be open to listening to their observations, but he also criticized them strongly for not having done more to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

earle@mail.chinadailyuk.com