The King faces what is likely to be the greatest diplomatic test of his reign next month after Buckingham Palace confirmed his state visit trip to the US to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence.
But as if to highlight the diplomatic tight rope Charles and Queen Camilla must walk, the announcement came less than an hour after President Donald Trump launched another blistering attack on the UK for failing to give more direct help on his attack on Iran.
With the Trump launching a series of public attacks on Starmer, the visit will raise fears in both Downing Street and the Palace that the King may have to endure a public tirade against the Prime Minister by the president.
Royal experts said the trip has the potential to be both “tense” and a “diplomatic nightmare” and will call on all the King’s diplomatic skills, honed over a lifetime of royal visits.
But it is also hoped that if a success the visit – the first state visit of a British monarch to the US in almost 20 years – will help put the ‘special relationship’ back on track.
Trump goes on the attack – again
The President has repeatedly attacked the PM publicly for not joining the offensive against the Iranian regime, saying he is “no Winston Churchill” for only offering military support in a defensive capacity.
In a social media post on Tuesday, he again attacked the UK and other European countries, ordering them to “go get your own oil” as he threatened to abandon the conflict in the Middle East without securing the crucial Strait of Hormuz waterway.
“All of those countries that can’t get jet fuel because of the Strait of Hormuz, like the United Kingdom which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran, I have a suggestion for you… build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just TAKE IT,” he wrote.
“You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the USA. won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there for us,.”.
It means the King will face a diplomatic minefield when he goes to Washington, at the end of April, in particular with a planned address to Congress in the presence of the often-unguarded President.
Charles will also attend a state banquet at the White House, with the visit intended to celebrate the British-American links and the 250th anniversary of the US.
Trump declared the trip will be “TERRIFIC!” and a “momentous occasion” in a post online, revealing the “historic state visit” will take place over four days from April 27 to 30.
The President has long been an admirer of the British Royal Family and has already enjoyed two state visits to the UK to visit the late Queen, Elizabeth II, and King Charles.
And, in a mark of how important the relationship is to the President, it is understood Trump intends to be closely involved with the details of the visit, which The i Paper understands, will be set by the Americans.
Unlike Trump’s visit to the UK, the King will only have the Queen for royal support, and will be at the behest of a US schedule.
‘It’s a very awkward situation’
Ian Lloyd, author of The Queen: 70 chapters in the life of Elizabeth II, said the King was a “master” of diplomacy and “will handle it very well and make a speech that’s quite appropriate”.
Speaking to The i Paper, Lloyd said if it was just a routine visit, not tied to a specific commemoration event, it could easily be postponed. But the tie in with the 250th anniversary of American independence would make any cancellation a problem.
“It’s a very awkward situation because of the timing. I would think it’s a diplomatic nightmare for the Palace and the British government and so on, I bet they all wish that the King hadn’t made an agreement,” he said.
Lloyd said he expects the King will make a “very diplomatic speech” at the state banquet, but anticipates that while Trump will revel in the state visit, for the King it will be “quite agonising”.
He added that it could also be quite awkward if the King is asked about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his links to the late paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
“That would overshadow the visit and that put the King in a very embarrassing situation.”
The King and his aides will be braced for the US president’s unpredictability and the risk of him saying something that breaches protocol, such as further insults about Starmer or the UK, and throws the visit off kilter.
‘Charles will be dreading it’
Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine, said: “It’s going to be a slightly tense situation because of his dissing of Starmer and British institutions starting with the armed forces.”.
The royal biographer added that the King would be dreading the trip, even though he and Trump have corresponded for years.
“The Royal Family don’t have a choice; they have to go where the government sends them,” she said. .
“Charles will be dreading it. I am sure Charles will not be happy about it but he knows it’s his duty.
“I don’t think he will relish the challenge. I don’t think he wants another challenge. He’s got the challenge of cancer and his (younger) son.”
The King is expected to try to charm his hosts by referring in his speeches to Congress and at a state banquet in the White House to his family’s long personal connection to the US.
He has visited the country 19 times before and the so-called special relationship goes back to his late grandparents, George VI and Queen Elizabeth’s, state visit to the US on the eve of war in 1939.
‘Special relationship’ not under strain, UK says
In its announcement, Buckingham Palace was careful not to give the precise dates of the trip yet. But on Truth Social, Trump wrote that he and First Lady Melania Trump looked forward to welcoming the royal couple for a “Historic State Visit from April 27-30th, which will include a beautiful Banquet Dinner at the White House on the evening of April 28th.”
He added: “This momentous occasion will be even more special this year, as we commemorate the 250th Anniversary of our Great Country.
“I look forward to spending time with the King, whom I greatly respect. It will be TERRIFIC!”
Starmer used the offer of Trump’s second state visit to the UK, in 2025, as a thinly-veiled ploy to sweeten relations between the two leaders.
UK Government sources dispute any suggestion that the so-called “special relationship” – a phrase used to describe the close ties and cooperation over security, intelligence and defence as well as cultural friendliness – is under strain.
After the visit Charles will travel on to Bermuda without Camilla for a royal visit to the British Overseas Territory.
Starmer has faced pressure from senior Labour figures and others to advise the King to cancel or delay the visit as a result.
Dame Emily Thornberry, chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, suggested delaying the trip rather than risk embarrassing the King and Queen, while senior politicians, including Sir Ed Davey, the Liberal Democrat leader, have said the US visit should be cancelled.
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