King Charles III begins four-day US state visit aimed at mending UK-Washington ties

WASHINGTON (AP) — Some 250 years after the thirteen American colonies broke away from Britain under King George III, his descendant King Charles III touches down in Washington on Monday with the trans-Atlantic partnership wobbling and security worries front and centre.

A shooting on Saturday at a Washington dinner where President Donald Trump was present forced officials to take a fresh look at the security plan for the four-day state visit, which is meant to mark the 250th anniversary of the United States and renew the so-called "special relationship" between London and Washington. Buckingham Palace said the king "is greatly relieved to hear that the president, first lady and all guests have been unharmed." Following the review, the palace confirmed the visit "will proceed as planned."

The political backdrop was already tense before the weekend incident, with friction between the British government and the White House over matters including the war in Iran. Over the past several weeks, Trump has publicly criticised Prime Minister Keir Starmer for refusing to back US military strikes on Iran, brushing him off as "not Winston Churchill" — a reference to the wartime British leader credited with coining the term "special relationship."

That quarrel is part of a broader fallout between Trump and Washington's NATO partners, whom the president has branded "cowards" and "useless" for staying out of the Iran action. A Pentagon email that surfaced publicly hinted that the United States might rethink its backing of British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands in the south Atlantic, the territory at the centre of the 1982 war between Britain and Argentina, where the islands are also called the Islas Malvinas.

Trump maintains that the political chill will not bleed into the royal trip. Charles "has nothing to do with that," the president said in March, referring to NATO. He has consistently described the monarch in warm language, calling Charles his "friend" and a "great guy," and continues to praise his own "amazing" September trip to the United Kingdom alongside first lady Melania Trump for a historic second state visit.

That earlier visit followed Starmer's Oval Office hand-delivery of the king's invitation, which came five weeks after Trump returned to the White House and was seen as a deliberate effort to court the Republican leader. The royal family pulled out the stops for the Trumps with red-coated guardsmen, military bands and a lavish banquet at Windsor Castle.

"President Trump has always had great respect for King Charles, and their relationship was further strengthened by the president's historic visit to the United Kingdom last year," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told The Associated Press. "The president looks forward to a special visit by Their Majesties, which will include a beautiful state dinner and multiple events throughout the week."

Trump separately told the BBC that the royal stay could "absolutely" help mend the trans-Atlantic bond. "He's fantastic. He's a fantastic man. Absolutely the answer is yes," he said.

Kristofer Allerfeldt, a University of Exeter scholar of American history, said the two sides come to the table with very different priorities. For Charles, he said, it is about "reinforcing long-term ties, showcasing the monarchy's soft power and reminding the world that Britain still carries diplomatic weight." For Trump, the visit is more of "a media event" focused on the optics of "two gilded monarchs" appearing side by side.

Some British politicians fear the trip is loaded with chances for an awkward moment, especially after Trump's recent jabs at Pope Leo XIV. Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey, head of the centrist opposition party, branded the president "a dangerous and corrupt gangster" earlier this month and asked the government to call the visit off. "I really fear for what Trump might say or do while our king is forced to stand by his side," Davey told the House of Commons. "We cannot put His Majesty in that position." Starmer pushed back, arguing that "the monarchy, through the bonds that it builds, is often able to reach through the decades" and shore up key relationships.

Adding pressure is the lingering controversy around the king's younger brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who has lost his Prince Andrew title, been pushed out of public life and is now the subject of a police probe linked to his association with Jeffrey Epstein. He has denied any wrongdoing. Survivors of Epstein's abuse have called on the king to sit down with them and other victims of sexual abuse, though such a meeting is not expected to happen.

Charles has travelled to the United States 19 times in his life, but this is his first state visit to the country since taking the throne in 2022. His late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, made four such visits during her reign. Aged 77 and disclosed in early 2024 to be undergoing treatment for an unspecified cancer, the king will spend four days in America with Queen Camilla at his side.

During the Washington leg, the royals will share a private tea with the Trumps, attend a garden party and sit down to a formal state dinner at the White House, while the president and the king are also scheduled to meet one-on-one. Beyond the capital, the couple will visit the September 11 memorial in New York and join a 250th-birthday block party in Virginia, where Charles is also expected to meet Indigenous leaders working on nature conservation, a cause close to the environmentally minded monarch.