In his first United Kingdom interview as president-elect, Donald Trump said the U.S. will offer Britain a quick and “fair” trade deal within weeks of taking office, in an effort to aid Brexit efforts, the Times of London reported.
Trump, who added that Brexit will be a “great thing,” revealed he’ll invite Prime Minister Theresa May to visit “right after” he takes office.
He also predicted more European Union nations will follow suit and seek independence, pointing to the refugee crisis as a critical factor.
“I do believe this, if [EU countries] hadn’t been forced to take in all of the refugees, so many, with all the problems that it … entails, I think that you wouldn’t have a Brexit. It probably could have worked out but this was the final straw, this was the final straw that broke the camel’s back,” he said.
{mosads}“I think it’s very tough,” Trump told the Times. “People, countries want their own identity and the UK wanted its own identity.”
He said German Chancellor Angela Merkel made “one very catastrophic mistake and that was taking all of these illegals, you know, taking all of the people from wherever they come from,” he said. “And nobody even knows where they come from. So I think she made a catastrophic mistake, very bad mistake.”
But he said he’ll start his presidency by trusting Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin, though that might not last long.
He said he’ll agree to a nuclear weapons reduction deal with Russia in exchange for lifting U.S. sanctions, though he hammered Russia for its actions in Syria.
Trump also confirmed he’ll appoint son-in-law Jared Kushner to broker a Middle East peace deal.