US president Donald Trump has held a meeting with Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage during his state visit to the UK.
Farage tweeted the pair had a “good meeting” and the president “really believes in Brexit” after the Brexiteer was pictured arrived at the US ambassador’s residence in London, Winfield House, where Trump is staying.
Farage famously met the president at Trump Tower in 2016 soon after his election victory.
Then leader of Ukip, Farage was pictured in the gilded hallways of the skyscraper with the president-elect. Trump recently described the Brexiteer as a “friend of mine”.
The Republican politician has repeatedly signalled his support for Brexit, and tweeted on Monday that a US-UK trade deal is “possible once UK gets rid of the shackles”.
Trump has already upset the apple cart of domestic British politics by wading into the Tory leadership contest, and Conservative rivals for the soon-to-vacant top job have jostled for time with the president.
Trump praised Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt but embarrassed their rival Michael Gove.
The US president used the Westminster press conference with May to stress that he thought Johnson and Hunt would do a “very good job” taking over as prime minister.
But in a bizarre moment he claimed he did not know Gove, despite the environment secretary interviewing him in 2017, and then asked Hunt if he thought his opponent would do a good job.
Brexit-supporting Conservative MPs Owen Paterson, a former environment secretary, and Iain Duncan Smith, a former party leader, were also seen at Winfield House after an apparent meeting with Trump.
During his state visit, the US leader has already held a 20-minute phone call with Johnson, invited Gove to a meeting, and had plenty of face time with Hunt as he fulfils his duties as foreign secretary. Hunt and Trump will also look for time for one-to-one talks.