A consolatory hug goodbye: European leaders embrace Keir Starmer at Berlin summit as departing PM makes one of his final foreign trips

By GREG HEFFER, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT Published: 18:31, 24 June 2026 | Updated: 18:44, 24 June 2026 Keir Starmer was today embraced by European leaders as he made one of his final foreign trips as Prime Minister. Two days after he tearfully announced his resignation as Labour premier, Sir Keir travelled to Berlin for a meeting of 'E5' group of countries. The PM was seen sharing a hug at the talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni, and Polish PM Donald Tusk. The talks, hosted by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, saw the leaders of Europe's largest military powers discuss the continent's security. They also spoke about next month's NATO summit in Turkey, which is set to be Sir Keir's farewell to the international stage. The PM is intent on finally publishing his long-delayed Defence Investment Plan (DIP) prior to the NATO gathering, as he bids to establish a legacy from his time in Downing Street. The Ankara meeting of the military alliance will almost certainly be Sir Keir's last face-to-face encounter with Donald Trump as PM, and turning up effectively empty-handed would be highly embarrassing.  However, Andy Burnham - who is almost certain to succeed him in Downing Street -  is said to be pressuring Sir Keir not to push ahead with the DIP before he leaves No10 because he wants to decide on the multi-billion pound package himself. Keir Starmer was seen sharing a hug with Italian PM Giorgia Meloni at the Berlin meeting The PM was also embraced by French President Emmanuel Macron as E5 leaders held talks in the German capital Polish PM Donald Tusk greeted Sir Keir at the discussions hosted by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz The Berlin visit is set to be one of Sir Keir's final foreign trips as PM The ten-year DIP was originally supposed to be published last autumn, but has been repeatedly delayed amid a furious Whitehall funding row. The DIP will set out how new equipment and defence infrastructure will be funded over the coming decade and follows last June's publication of the wide-ranging strategic defence review. Speaking at a press conference in Berlin alongside his fellow European leaders on Wednesday, Sir Keir said the DIP will reflect 'the lessons of Ukraine'. He insisted it will 'completely overhaul' how defence funding is spent, saying: 'The UK is ready to implement the largest sustained increase in defence funding since the Cold War. 'We've already taken steps last year to that end, and we'll take further steps, and we're going further, working to deliver our Defence Investment Plan ahead of the NATO summit, not just to increase how much we spend on defence, but to completely overhaul how we spend it, to learn the lessons of Ukraine, and to ensure that we are ready to meet the threats of today and of tomorrow.' After announcing an end to his spell as PM earlier this week, Sir Keir told his fellow E5 leaders he was 'proud of the work that we've done over the last two years'. He added that Wednesday's discussions had seen the group reiterate their 'unwavering support to Ukraine' amid Russia's invasion, which has now lasted longer than the First World War. Sir Keir also said the E5 had expressed their 'determination to capitalise on Ukraine's new-found momentum'. 'They are increasingly able to push Russia back on the battlefield,' he continued. 'That has been the story very much of this year and there are clear signs that as Russia loses ground and their economy struggles, the mood in Moscow is turning against Putin's war. 'So this is a really important moment to ramp up the pressure on their economy, with more sanctions, and providing Ukraine with more military support. 'We are committed to driving this forward and that this should be the first item on the agenda at the NATO summit in a couple of weeks' time.'  The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.