Description: The United Kingdom and the European Union made a significant step towards improving and resetting relations after a meeting at London’s Lancaster House saw the conclusion of an extended bilateral agreement. EU Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen was accompanied by the EU Council President Antonio Costa and EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas, met with UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer to announce the conclusion of the agreement which represented a significant strategic and geopolitical development. Ever since US President Donald Trump upended the traditional power dynamics and multilateral relations, EU and the UK have both distanced themselves from the US and aimed at acquiring strategic partnerships which would serve both UK’s national interests and the bloc’s regional and global strategic prospects. The deal would undertake bilateral issues such as trade, the import and export of goods and services in the food industry, UK’s inclusion into the planned $167 billion defense program to rearm Europe, student exchange programs, facilitated easement of border controls and the long-awaited fishing agreement. The agreement is expected to strategically benefit both sides in the long – term as UK’s inclusion in EU’s defense program as well as the extended benefits from the fishing agreement would have to be carefully implemented. Starmer and Von der Leyen praised the agreement and labeled it as resetting the relationship between the UK and the EU in their pre – Brexit era.
Impact: After securing the essential trade agreement with the US, the UK achieved another geostrategic milestone by garnering Europe in a major strategic realignment. Despite mounting criticism from his political opposition, Starmer managed to conclude two crucial deals of high importance for the UK in the ever – revolving geopolitical fluctuations and reduce the enduring impact of Brexit on UK’s economy and geostrategic positioning. Europe despite forming a cohesive geostrategic front with the UK would also benefit from the reset of relations economically especially through the reproached fishing agreement and UK’s inclusion in the EU defensive program. Traditionally natural allies, both EU and the UK showcased differentiated unilateral approach in treating future geostrategic relations, which was undoubtedly impacted by the US, as a new foreign policy paradigm dictating future geopolitical relations.