Opinion: The value of economic diplomacy in U.S.-U.K. relations

“Special” is an overused adjective. When describing the enduring friendship between the United States and the United Kingdom, however, the modifier truly carries weight. Policymakers on both sides of the Atlantic would do well to ensure our special relationship doesn’t end up as another useless platitude.
The roots of our relationship run deep. The fingerprints of the great British Enlightenment thinkers and the English common-law tradition are evident throughout our founding documents. During her 70-year reign, Queen Elizabeth II met with 13 U.S. presidents, dating back to Truman. President Roosevelt stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Winston Churchill, united in protecting the freedoms central to our Western way of life. Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher together articulated the case against communism for the world to hear.
Our special relationship and its achievements are only possible because both nations actively choose to invest in and grow the diplomatic and economic ties that bind us. Without “blood, toil, tears, and sweat,” we risk losing one of our most significant comparative advantages in protecting our shared interests.
When the people of the U.K. voted to leave the European Union, the prime opportunity arose to reinvigorate bilateral trade with the newly independent nation. To the credit of the previous administration, they tried. In late 2018, President Trump directed U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to notify Congress of the administration’s intent to negotiate a trade agreement with the U.K. upon its withdrawal from the European Union. Delays in the U.K.’s formal exit from the EU and an unfriendly political climate in Washington once again put economic diplomacy with our closest ally “at the back of the queue.” In 2022, hope emerged in Congress when the Senate unanimously agreed to a resolution calling on the president to finalize negotiations on a trade agreement with the U.K. Unfortunately, the executive branch’s posture remained unchanged.
Economic diplomacy is a touchy subject on both sides of the Atlantic, but while we bicker with our friends, our enemies capitalize on our division.
Whether protectionist or free trade, both sides can agree that “friendshoring” is a winning strategy for both nations. The most recent data show that the U.K. is our 5th largest trading partner for goods exports, with a positive trade balance. For our friends across the pond, the U.S. is the U.K.’s top trading partner. The top U.S. exports, which include oil, natural gas, metals and aerospace products, are essential to the U.K.’s security.
For individual states, the economic ties are even stronger. In our home state of Utah, the U.K. is the state’s largest export market, with $7.2 billion in goods sent to the U.K. in 2023, representing nearly half of the state’s total exports. Utah is single-handedly setting the example for a successful “friendshoring” strategy.
In 2023, the state of Utah inked a trade and economic cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the U.K. The MOU focuses specifically on areas like fintech, aerospace, life sciences and supply chain resilience that will benefit both nations. Utah’s approach is not only mutually beneficial but also nimble, reducing bureaucratic barriers and opening up markets quickly.
Utah’s economic success, evidenced by its 17-year streak as the No. 1 state for Economic Outlook in Rich States, Poor States, exemplifies the effectiveness of its strategies and policies. This approach offers valuable lessons for national leaders to consider on a broader scale.
The U.K.’s newly minted prime minister, Keir Starmer, just visited the United States for his first bilateral meeting with President Biden focused on the special relationship. Both leaders should set fears aside and restart negotiations on a bilateral trade agreement. In a renewed age of great power competition, with global adversaries poised to challenge U.S. supremacy, “friendshoring” on a bilateral basis must be the core strategy of U.S. economic diplomacy. Time is of the essence, and we hope that President Biden and Prime Minister Starmer will seize the moment and follow the example of their predecessors.
After all, we “get by with a little help from our friends.”
Sen. Mike Lee is the senior United States Senator from Utah. Jonathan Freedman is the president and CEO of World Trade Center Utah.