May to relay Trump's Nato message at EU summit
Prime Minister will pass on US President's call to boost defence spending during trip to Malta
Theresa May has been labelled "Donald Trump's messenger" as she arrives in Malta to tell European Union leaders they must boost defence spending.
The Prime Minister will update her fellow politicians on her meeting with the new US President in Washington last week, during which she said he had committed to maintaining his country's role in Nato.
"After holding hands with Trump, May arrived at a European Union summit in a former British colony with a special message from the US president," says Bloomberg. "She'll relay that Trump promised to back Nato, the military alliance he has called 'obsolete', but the President wants everyone to meet their financial commitments."
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Trump has made it clear he thinks some Nato members are not paying enough in exchange for protection from larger countries.
May will "act as Trump's messenger" and urge the other states to meet their pledge to spend two per cent of their national income on defence, says the Daily Mirror.
However, the newspaper adds, it is "not certain that raising Mr Trump will be a diplomatic triumph for Mrs May when the President has suggested he would like to see the break up of the EU".
The Prime Minister is also expected to say that the UK will continue to help with Europe's migrant crisis and will be a "reliable partner" after Brexit, says the BBC.
It comes as Malta, which currently holds the presidency of the Council of the EU, warned the UK will be a "junior partner" in any trade deal with the EU and must pay a fee to leave the bloc.
Speaking ahead of the summit, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said: "I do believe the UK is in a very delicate situation right now. It is fetching a free trade deal with Europe and eventually the United States.
"In both trade deals it will be the junior partner... I think it is a balancing job the Prime Minister must make. I will not judge her on the choices she makes.
"But it is pretty clear she needs to choose her priorities well."
May is expected to hold face-to-face talks with Muscat and also meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern.
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