British soldiers during a NATO exercise in Poland in February 2024. (Liesa Johannssen/Bloomberg)

The EU is trying to speed up talks with the UK on a new defense and security pact, with the election of Donald Trump raising concerns in Europe that it will have to boost aid to Ukraine amid the possibility of reduced US support.

A UK-EU defense deal is now a top priority in their relationship and has gained momentum in recent days, according to people familiar with the talks.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and EU leaders used a summit in Budapest on Thursday to step up talks on ways the security relationship could be strengthened, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity. British officials are considering what would be included in such a pact and are considering steps such as joint arms purchases and more joint military exercises and expeditions.

In a presidential debate in September, Trump sidestepped a question about whether he wanted Ukraine to succeed in its effort to expel the invading Russians, and his running mate, JD Vance, said a deal to end the war would “probably ” maintaining Russia. the land it seized in Ukraine and Kiev, agreeing to give up its goal of joining NATO.

Even though the EU is Ukraine’s largest aid provider, Kiev relies on the US for crucial military resources such as F-16s and long-range ATACM missiles.

The EU has largely depleted its existing arms stockpile to send to Ukraine, but Britain is better supplied, according to a European diplomatic official.

During Thursday’s meeting of the European Political Community in Budapest, hosted by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Starmer held talks with his Czech, Polish and Ukrainian counterparts. He also met with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

Starmer will meet French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris next week as he commemorates the end of the First World War.

Starmer and Poland’s Donald Tusk “discussed their desire to deepen their existing defense and security partnership, particularly in the face of ongoing Russian aggression,” according to a Downing Street spokesman.

While Britain’s foreign secretary, David Lammy, said he wanted the deal to be ambitious, some officials warned that a deal could not risk breaching the defense pact the UK already has with the US and Australia, which focuses mainly on the production of nuclear-powered attack submarines.

While EU diplomats have always believed the security pact was feasible, despite private frustrations over the UK’s lack of details so far, the deal is now their top priority for UK-EU relations because of the US election result, said the people.

British officials expect formal negotiations to begin in the coming months once the new EU commission gets underway. Both UK and EU diplomats believe 2025 is the crucial window for scrapping these pacts and warn that momentum from the reset under the new British administration risks being lost beyond that.