US President Donald Trump told The Sun newspaper that UK Prime Minister Theresa May has ignored his advice by opting for a soft Brexit strategy. He warned she may have killed off any chance of a trade deal with the US.

May’s Brexit plan “will definitely affect trade with the United States, unfortunately in a negative way,” said the US president.

Trump’s criticism comes over the prime minister’s new Brexit plan, which was unveiled in full on Wednesday. May said earlier that Brexit was an “opportunity” to create growth in the UK and the US.

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According to the US president, he has told May how to do a Brexit deal, but, “She didn’t agree, she didn’t listen to me.”

“I told her how to do it. That will be up to her to say. But I told her how to do it. She wanted to go a different route,” Trump said, adding: “If they do a deal like that, we would be dealing with the European Union instead of dealing with the UK, so it will probably kill the deal.”

“We have enough difficulty with the European Union,” he added. “We are cracking down right now on the European Union because they have not treated the United States fairly on trading.”

Talking about former UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, Trump said he would make a “great prime minister,” adding: “I think he’s got what it takes.”

Trump’s remarks came as he prepared to meet May for a working lunch at Chequers. The US president and his wife were given a red-carpet reception at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire on Thursday evening.

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