Donald Trump claimed the suggestion he does not like Theresa May is a “false rumour” and said he and the prime minister are “on the same wavelength in every respect”.
The US President told reporters at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday afternoon that the US and UK had “the same ideas” and “the same ideals”.
Sitting alongside May following a private meeting, Trump said he had “tremendous respect” for the prime minister and that the “feeling is mutual”.
May and Trump’s relationship appeared to sour after Trump retweeted the far-right Britain First and then admonished the prime minister for not focusing on “terrorism”.
Speaking in Davos, Trump said: “The prime minister and myself have had a really great relationship, although some people don’t necessarily believe that.
“But I can tell you I have a tremendous respect for the prime minister and the job she is doing and I think the feeling is mutual from the standing point of liking each other a lot. We are on the same wavelength in every respect.”
The President added: “There was a little bit a of a false rumour out there I just wanted to correct it.”
Trump said on foreign affairs, he and May had “the same ideas, the same ideals.
“There is nothing that would happen to you that we won’t be there to fight for you, you know that,” he said.
May told the gathered reporters that she and Trump had a “great discussion” in their meeting.
“We continue to have that really special relationship between the UK and the US, standing shoulder to shoulder because we’re facing the same the same challenges across the world and as you say, we’re working together to defeat those challenges and to meet them,” she said.
“And alongside that working for a good trade relationship in the future which will be to both our benefits so the US and the UK both do well out of this and it’s been great to see you today.”
May’s decision to offer Trump a formal state visit to the UK triggered a significant backlash in the UK – with MPs demanding it be cancelled.
Emily Thornberry, Labour’s shadow foreign secretary, recently described Trump as a “racist” and an “asteroid of awfulness that has fallen on this world”/