The Prime Minister hosted the Prime Minister of The Netherlands, Rob Jetten, at Downing Street this afternoon.

The Prime Minister began by setting out how strong the relationship between the UK and The Netherlands was across the board, including on energy security, migration, growth and investment. Both countries had been long-standing friends and partners and continued to be, the leaders agreed.

Turning to recent events in the Middle East, the Prime Ministers updated on their recent diplomatic meetings, including Prime Minister Starmer’s visit to the Gulf, and Prime Minister Jetten’s meetings in Washington.

The summit on the Strait of Hormuz on Friday would be a vital moment to continue to drive diplomatic, military and economic work, the leaders underlined.

Both also reiterated their deep concern at the situation in Lebanon and the need for deescalation. On Ukraine, the Prime Minister thanked Prime Minister Jetten for The Netherlands’ unwavering support and reflected on Ukraine’s momentum on the battlefield.

Putin was benefitting from the events in the Gulf, and it was vital partners looked at how they could step up pressure on Russia to mitigate that, the Prime Minister added.

They both agreed on the importance of a stronger Europe, including through defence industrial cooperation and building on the strength of the UK- Netherlands maritime partnership.

Moving on to the UK’s relationship with the European Union, the Prime Minister set out the UK’s ambition to have a closer relation with Europe. The Prime Minister set out how he believed the partnership between the UK and the bloc needed to be fit for the challenges we were facing today.

The leaders also discussed the importance of tackling illegal migration and stepping up work together on the issue.

Both leaders agreed to stay in close touch.