Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership faces a storm as international law and political alliances collide. The UK Prime Minister is caught in a web of complex decisions.
As international reaction continues, the Prime Minister is being pulled in multiple directions. (Image: Getty)
When Sir Keir Starmer arrived in No 10, he made clear that respect for international law would be central to his leadership.
That pledge is now under strain after the UK’s closest ally launched an operation in a sovereign state and detained its leader, leaving the Prime Minister facing an acute political dilemma, reports the Telegraph.
Donald Trump’s seizure of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores risks becoming a serious problem for Sir Keir, who has been trying to steady his leadership following a difficult year.
After investing political capital in building a cautious but cordial relationship with the unpredictable US president, the Labour leader must now weigh that connection against his stated values and growing unrest on his own backbenches, where some MPs have long defended the Venezuelan government.
Pressure from Labour’s left
Richard Burgon, chair of the Socialist Campaign Group, urged Sir Keir to “stand up to Trump’s gangster politics” and said he should “respond to an illegal bombing and kidnapping by Trump in exactly the way he would if Putin had carried it out.”
“Either Keir Starmer believes in international law – or he doesn’t,” he added.
As international reaction continues, the Prime Minister is being pulled in multiple directions.
One source of pressure comes from the Labour Left, which has already forced several policy reversals, and is now calling for a clear condemnation of Mr Maduro’s detention.
Starmer must ‘take a firmer line’ against Trump
Labour MPs Jon Trickett, Kim Johnson and Kate Osborne echoed Mr Burgon’s remarks, calling on Sir Keir to take a firmer line against Mr Trump.
John McDonnell, the former shadow chancellor under Jeremy Corbyn, also questioned how the US action differed from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The long-serving MP, a prominent figure within the Socialist Campaign Group, previously described the Venezuelan system as “socialism in action”, before later saying the country had taken a “wrong turn.”
He has faced criticism in the past, including claims that his support for a four-day working week in 2019 was an attempt to steer Britain towards Venezuela’s economic model.
Reacting to early reports of the US operation, Mr McDonnell said: “If this is accurate, with no legal sanction, with no UN decision, what difference in international law is there between Trump’s attack on Venezuela and Putin’s invasion of Ukraine?
“If the UK Government stands for the rule of law, Keir Starmer must condemn this.”
Growing criticism from commentators
Left-wing writer Owen Jones expressed a similar view. Writing on X, he said: “Keir Starmer knows the facts: the US has brazenly broken international law by attacking Venezuela.
“He won’t say so, because he’s halfway up Donald Trump’s arse.”
These interventions point to a second consideration shaping Sir Keir’s response: his own legal outlook and the advice of Lord Hermer, his closest legal confidant.
The Prime Minister has consistently presented himself as a defender of the rule of law, regularly highlighting the need for nations to follow international agreements.
Labour’s election manifesto promised to “once again be a good partner for international development and a defender of the international rule of law.”
Lord Hermer, the Attorney General and a long-time associate of Sir Keir, previously argued that adherence to international law benefits people across the UK.
Starmer fails to commit
He also said Britain intended to “lead on international law issues” on the global stage.
Despite this, Sir Keir has declined to state whether he believes Mr Trump has violated international law, saying further details are required.
Media figures have intensified the scrutiny.
Speaking on the News Agents podcast, Lewis Goodall said: “The US has essentially invaded a sovereign nation without United Nations permission.
“It has kidnapped a sitting head of state, and it has done so on the basis not of international law, but on the basis of its own national law, which has no jurisdiction.”
Rory Stewart, the former Conservative MP and co-host of The Rest Is Politics podcast, argued that Europe must “wake up to the threat posed by the US”.
Veteran BBC journalist John Simpson warned that Mr Trump’s push for “forcible regime change” would weaken America’s position if China were to move against Taiwan.
Balancing principles and diplomacy
A third factor weighing on Sir Keir is his determination to protect his carefully managed relationship with the US president.
The Prime Minister has made a sustained effort to engage Mr Trump in the hope of securing trade agreements, largely avoiding direct public criticism.
Sir Keir must now decide whether the intervention in Venezuela represents a breach serious enough to justify challenging Washington, or whether preserving diplomatic ties takes precedence.
