President Trump in the UK

By Meg Wagner, Brian Ries, James Masters and Veronica Rocha, CNN

Updated 8:12 p.m. ET, July 13, 2018
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9:18 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

Trump tells May: Whatever you do on Brexit "is OK with us"

President Trump just told British Prime Minister Theresa May that whatever she decided to do with regards to Brexit "is OK with us" — as long as the US and UK can continue to trade together.

"Once the Brexit process is concluded, and perhaps the UK has left the EU — I don't know what they're going to do, but whatever you do is OK with me. That's your decision. Whatever you're going to do is OK with us. Just make sure we can trade together. That's all that matters."

What Trump said to a British newspaper: The President on Thursday night delivered an astonishing political knifing of the British Prime Minister, comprehensively undermining her fragile position in Britain's tortuous negotiations on leaving the European Union and getting his visit to the country off to the most explosive of starts.

In an interview with the Rupert Murdoch-owned newspaper The Sun, Trump said May had ignored his advice on Brexit, he praised former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson -- who has just walked out of her Cabinet over the issue -- and he said May's cherished hope of a free trade deal with the US would be killed off by her softened approach.

"She didn't listen to me," he told The Sun.

Why it matters: Trump's comments represent a stunning intervention in British domestic politics, especially since they came at the end of a week in which she lost three ministers, including Johnson, who said her approach is a betrayal of a referendum vote to leave the EU.

Watch:

9:08 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

Trump brings up NATO defense spending

President Trump, speaking at a press conference with British Prime Minister Theresa May, said NATO allies have agreed to increase their defense spending.

Trump visited the UK after spending two days in Brussels, Belgium for a NATO summit.

"Prime Minister May and I have just come from a very productive NATO summit — that was truly a productive summit, where my top priority was getting other NAO members to pay their full and fair share and the prime minister was right there with me," Trump said. "I want to thank you, prime minister for the United Kingdom’s contribution to our common defense."

Following the NATO summit, several world leaders rejected Trump's assertion that he convinced members to pay more.

9:04 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

Prime Minister May seeks "ambitious trade deal" with US

From CNN’s Simon Cullen

British Prime Minister Theresa May said Friday she is seeking an “ambitious trade deal” with the United States.

This comes just hours after the Sun, one of the UK’s most-read newspapers, unveiled a front-page interview with Donald Trump with the headline “May has wrecked Brexit… US deal is off!”

9:02 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

British prime minister opens Trump joint presser by speaking about US-UK "unity"

British Prime Minister Theresa May opened her remarks ahead of a joint press conference with President Donald Trump by outlining the unity between the two countries.

"No two countries do more together than ours to keep their people safe and prosperous," May said. "And we want to deepen that cooperation even further to meet the shared challenges we face now and in years ahead."

She outlined a number of examples where the two shared common priorities, such as fighting the use of chemical weapons, and ISIS in Syria, sanctions on North Korea, intelligence sharing, military cooperation, terrorism, and creating jobs.

"It is all of our responsibility to ensure that transatlantic unity endures," she added, "for it has been fundamental to the protection and projection of our interests and values for generations."

8:57 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

Trump and May hold hands as they walk to their press conference

Amid fallout over President Trump's comments to a London newspaper saying British Prime Minister "didn't listen" to him on Brexit, the two leaders were seen holding hands as they walked down steps approaching a podium for their joint press conference.

8:39 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

SOON: Trump has a news conference with British prime minister

Any minute now, President Trump will have a news conference with British Prime Minister Theresa May.

It could be awkward: In an interview with The Sun, Trump criticized May over her handling of Brexit.

"I told her how to do it. That will be up to her to say. But I told her how to do it. She wanted to go a different route," he told the tabloid.

Earlier today, Trump declined to comment on the interview. Instead, he said the US-UK relationship is "very, very strong."

8:28 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

Trump refuses to answer question about criticizing British prime minister

From CNN's Jeremy Diamond

President Trump declined to answer Friday when asked whether he regrets his interview with The Sun in which he criticized British Prime Minister Theresa May.

Instead, he very visibly shook his head and rolled his eyes, turning to his aides with a look that showed his clear displeasure with the question.

This came while he was sitting alongside British prime minister Theresa May for their bilateral meeting.

Here's what he said:

8:22 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

A UK choir is singing their protest

From Rory Smith, CNN

Rory Smith is in central London where the protesters are gathering ahead of the march.

7:18 a.m. ET, July 13, 2018

The "Baby Trump" balloon deflates in London

From CNN's Eliza Mackintosh

After just over two hours in the air, the 'Baby Trump' balloon is coming down in London.

Here's footage of the deflation: