Theresa May has claimed Donald Trump is "very easy to talk to", after previously criticising the US president-elect for his comments about London “no-go” areas.
Mrs May said the Republican is committed to the special relationship between the US and Britain.
Speaking during a visit to Bahrain, Mrs May said: "What I have found with Donald Trump is that he is somebody who very much values the relationship he has with the UK.
"When we've talked that's been one of the key things we've talked about, is the depth of our special relationship, and the fact that we both want to ensure that we obviously maintain that, but we also build on that for the future."
Asked how she found the president-elect, Mrs May said: "Very easy to talk to."
The warm words are a far cry from comments she expressed as home secretary when Mr Trump called for a ban on Muslims entering the US and claimed parts of London were no-go areas for the police.
At the time, Mrs May said: "I just think it shows he does not understand the UK and what happens in the UK."
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who was then mayor of London, said at the time: "I think Donald Trump is clearly out of his mind if he thinks that's a sensible way to proceed, to ban people going to the United States in that way, or to any country.
"What he's doing is playing the game of the terrorists and those who seek to divide us. That's exactly the kind of reaction they hope to produce.
"I think he's betraying a quite stupefying ignorance that makes him frankly unfit to hold the office of president of the United States.
"I would invite him to come and see the whole of London and take him round the city - except I wouldn't want to expose any Londoners to any unnecessary risk of meeting Donald Trump. The only reason I wouldn't go to some parts of New York is the real risk of meeting Donald Trump."
Mr Trump's unconventional approach to diplomacy left Downing Street embarrassed after the president-elect spoke to 10 other heads of state, and prime ministers, before Mrs May following his shock victory in November.
The pair have had a second telephone conversation since then, and Mr Trump has invited the PM to Washington after his inauguration.
Additional reporting by the Press Association.
