Paul Ryan called for the United States to have a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom once it exited the European Union. | Getty Ryan calls for post-Brexit trade deal with U.K.

House Speaker Paul Ryan is calling for the United States to pursue a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom once it has formally separated from the European Union, saying discussions should begin now in order to ease concerns and ensure a "smooth trade relationship."

That partnership should be pursued in parallel to the United States' negotiations with the European Union on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and would be easier to work out than that agreement, Ryan's office said today, pointing to comments he made Friday in interviews with Wisconsin media.


"We need to emphasize that they are our indispensable ally," Ryan told Milwaukee’s WISN radio. "We have a special relationship, and I think that does mean we should have a trade agreement with ... Great Britain."

A stable U.K.-U.S. trading relationship would improve both economies, Ryan said.

"We need to show our solidarity," Ryan added. "Obviously it takes time to do something like this, but I think it is something we should be working on.”

Ryan’s call comes after several Republican senators told POLITICO before last week's Brexit vote that they would be more than happy to pursue a U.S.-U.K. bilateral deal once the smoke cleared from the country’s split.