King Charles III will make a state visit to the United States in late April, Buckingham Palace announced Tuesday, as the British monarch seeks to repair the U.K.’s fractured relationship with the U.S. following the Iran war.
Buckingham Palace said Charles and his wife, Queen Camilla, will make the long-planned trip to mark the 250th anniversary of the U.S. winning its independence from British rule. The couple will travel to Bermuda after their U.S. visit.
“Their majesties’ programme will celebrate the historic connections and modern bilateral relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement.
The trip will be Charles’ first state visit to the U.S. as king, though he visited 19 times when he was the Prince of Wales. It will be the first state visit by a British monarch since 2007 when Charles’ mother, Queen Elizabeth, made her fourth trip to the U.S.
President Trump made a state visit to the U.K. in September, where he attended a lavish state dinner hosted by Charles and Camilla. Prince William and his wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales, also attended the dinner.
Charles’ visit to Washington comes at a tense time for U.S.-U.K. relations, strained by the Iran war. Mr. Trump has been very critical of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s reluctance to join the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran, though the U.K. is allowing the U.S. to use its bases for defensive operations.
At times, Mr. Trump’s criticism of Mr. Starmer has veered into personal attacks. During a recent Oval Office briefing with reporters, the president griped that Mr. Starmer is “not Winston Churchill,” referring to Britain’s World War II-era prime minister. Mr. Trump has also derided Britain’s offer to send more military assets to the region.
Mr. Trump has also changed his position on a British deal to transfer the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, home to the important joint U.S.-U.K. Diego Garcia air base, back to Mauritius. Some of Mr. Starmer’s political opponents at home have seized on Mr. Trump’s criticism of the British leader. While others have blasted Mr. Starmer for avoiding any direct criticism of the U.S. president for the Iran war, which is deeply unpopular in the U.K.
Ed Davey, who leads the Liberal Democrats, Britain’s third-biggest party in parliament, has urged the king to cancel the visit, saying Mr. Trump should not be given the honor of hosting a state dinner because of his repeated insults of the country.
The two leaders’ differences over the war threaten to rock what has been a historically close alliance between the U.S. and Great Britain.
Mr. Trump said last week that the rift with Mr. Starmer will not impact Charles’ visit, referring to the British monarch as “a friend” and “a great gentleman.”
The visit could also put Charles in a difficult situation. If there is a public portion of his meeting with Mr. Trump, he could face questions from British and American journalists about his brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who is under police investigation for misconduct over his ties to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Peter Mandelson, the U.K.’s former ambassador to Washington, was also arrested last month over allegations of misconduct in public office stemming from his ties to Epstein.
