Trump vows King Charles will be kept safe during U.S. visit

U.S. President Donald Trump issued public assurances regarding King Charles III’s personal security ahead of his arrival in Washington on Monday, saying the monarch would “be very safe” during his four-day state visit.

Following discussions between Buckingham Palace and the White House following Saturday’s shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in Washington, Buckingham Palace announced Sunday that Charles and Queen Camilla would be going ahead with the visit, with some very minor changes.

Trump told CBS’s 60 Minutes on Sunday that the White House, which King Charles will visit, was “really safe.”

“I think it’s great, he’ll be very safe... the White House grounds are really safe. This area of not very many acres is really safe. And he’ll be staying here, I believe he’s going to a couple of other locations because he’s here for a few days,” said Trump.

“They called him and they are so looking forward to being here. We spoke this morning.”

The palace said in a statement Sunday that the royal couple was eagerly anticipating their trip.

“Following discussions on both sides of the Atlantic throughout the day, and acting on advice of the government, we can confirm the state visit by their majesties will proceed as planned. The king and queen are most grateful to all those who have worked at pace to ensure this remains the case and are looking forward to the visit getting underway tomorrow.”

Preparations for the visit, which is in reciprocation for Trump’s state visit to Britain in September and to mark the United States’ 250th anniversary, were at an advanced stage when Saturday’s incident occurred, with Britain’s Union Jack flag flying alongside the Stars and Stripes in the streets around 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Sir Christian Turner, Britain’s ambassador to the United States, said Prime Minister Keir Starmer called Trump on Sunday to wish him well following the shooting and that the visit would go ahead largely unchanged.

Charles and Camilla also contacted the Trumps privately following Saturday’s attack to express their sympathy.

Sir Christian said the focus of the visit would be “renewing and revitalising a unique friendship.”

The “shared history, shared sacrifice and common values” of the two countries would be on display, highlighting a partnership that made the people of both the United States and Britain “safer, richer and happier,” he added.

The itinerary will see an official welcoming ceremony and events at the White House on Tuesday with Charles then heading to Capitol Hill to address both houses of Congress, before Trump and First Lady Melania Trump host an official state dinner for the royal couple in the East Room of the White House in the evening.

On Wednesday, the royal couple will go onto New York where Charles will be hosted by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani for a wreath-laying ceremony to commemorate the 67 British victims of the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Charles and Camilla return to Washington for their formal parting with their hosts on Thursday before heading to Virginia and then onwards to the British overseas territory of Bermuda.

The visit comes at a time when trans-Atlantic relations have been strained over the United States’ war with Iran, with Trump angered that Britain has not supported it, although it has allowed U.S. military aircraft to use RAF bases in England and in Diego Garcia.

Trump has repeatedly attacked Starmer over his refusal to back the U.S. military offensive but the pair are also at odds over “opening” North Sea oil and gas fields, with Trump saying it was imperative Britain resumed drilling and extraction, and immigration, where he said Starmer needed to emulate the “strong” policies of the United States.

London is hoping the royal visit will go some way to smoothing over the difficulties, particularly given Trump’s well-known admiration for the British monarchy.

Asked by the BBC on Thursday whether the king coming to the United States would heal the rift, Trump said it was very likely to.

“Absolutely. He’s fantastic. He’s a fantastic man. Absolutely the answer is yes. I know him well, I’ve known him for years. He’s a brave man, and he’s a great man. They would absolutely be a positive.”

However, he was less positive regarding his relationship with Starmer but said he still had a chance to recover from a domestic crisis over his appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington if he changed direction on energy and immigration.

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