Nothing like a bit of pomp and circumstance to heal the wounds in a bilateral relationship, that of London and Washington, which has been very strained in recent months. The formula, of course, seems infallible when it comes to ingratiating oneself with US President Donald Trump, and on the other side is the British monarchy. After months of imprecations against Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his government, and even threatening last week to recognize Argentina’s sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands, this Tuesday the Republican had very warm words for bilateral ties as he formally welcomed King Charles of England and his wife, Camilla, to the White House on the second day of the royal couple’s state visit.
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There was, certainly, a lavish display of pomp and finery this Tuesday at the official reception ceremony in the White House gardens, under a gray sky and a light drizzle of classic “British weather,” as Trump joked. The flags of the two countries waved in the streets around the presidential residence. A military band played the respective national anthems. A 21-gun salute greeted the sovereign and his wife. Charles of England and Trump reviewed the troops, dressed in ceremonial uniform.
After weeks of invective against the Starmer Government, a visibly pleased Trump extended an olive branch, at least in public, in a speech notable for its restraint, its nods to the shared history and culture between the two countries, and its relative brevity: twelve minutes with hardly any improvisations, a rarity for a politician who likes to verbalize his stream of consciousness and usually exceeds the allotted time for his public statements. “Before Americans had a nation or a Constitution, we first had a culture, a character, and a creed. Before we even declared our independence, Americans carried with us the most precious gift, moral courage. And it came from a small but powerful kingdom across the sea,” the president noted in his welcome speech.
The president, who has always acknowledged his fondness for the British royal family, also recalled his mother’s devotion, a Scot from the Hebrides — “tough Scotland” — to the royals, especially Queen Elizabeth II, mother of the current monarch, and Charles III himself. “She thought he was adorable… she had a kind of crush on him,” he recalled affectionately.
Later came the exchange of gifts between the two heads of state and their spouses. An exchange that emphasized the common message both parties wanted to highlight: that of unity and shared history, as the United States commemorates the 250th anniversary of its independence. That “special relationship” that successive respective governments like to boast about but which has been tested time and again in recent months, to the point that leaked statements from the current British ambassador in Washington, Chris Turner, during a private event mention that today the only “special relationship” the United States has is “with Israel.”
Charles III presented Trump with a facsimile of the plans for the manufacture in 1879 of the Resolute desk, which generations of US presidents have used in the Oval Office, made from the wood of the British explorer ship of the same name and which Queen Victoria gave to then US President Rutherford Hayes in 1880. In turn, the White House occupant presented the British king with a letter in which one of the founding fathers of the United States, John Adams, describes his experience and emotions as the new country’s first ambassador to the Court of St. James in 1785.
The British sovereign and the Queen Consort had landed in Washington on Monday with a mission: to redirect the deteriorated bilateral ties, fundamental for a London that remembers that both countries share trade links worth 430 billion dollars and more than a million citizens of the respective countries work for companies of the other. Under Trump’s mandate, and after an initial period of apparent great harmony between the president and Starmer, tensions had been increasing, escalating sharply after the war in Iran.
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British resistance to collaborating in a coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and London’s agreement to return sovereignty of the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius — where the Diego Garcia military base is fundamental to the US global defense structure — made the Labour prime minister the main target of the Republican president’s generalized anger against European allies; only the Spanish Government has been subjected to greater threats and derogatory comments. “He’s not exactly Churchill,” Trump declared about Starmer.
The most recent attack came last week, when in a social media message he threatened to change US policy on the Malvinas Islands (for the United Kingdom, which controls them, they are the Falkland Islands) and recognize Argentine sovereignty, 44 years after the war that pitted London and Buenos Aires against each other for the southern archipelago.
Security measures
The visit of Charles III and his wife is taking place amid strong scrutiny of security measures, following the apparent assassination attempt against Trump and members of his Administration on Saturday night during the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Hilton hotel in Washington.
The British sovereign was expected to allude to that incident this afternoon in his major public address in the United States: a speech before both chambers of the US Congress, the first by a monarch of his country since Queen Elizabeth II delivered one in 1991.
Buckingham Palace sources have indicated that in the speech, which will last about twenty minutes, Charles of England plans to highlight “the greatest consideration and friendship of the British people towards the people of the United States in this historic milestone that is this year’s anniversary.” The main theme of the address will be that, despite the challenges, the United States and the United Kingdom can defend and reaffirm their shared democratic values to create security and prosperity not only for themselves, but also for the whole world, these sources added.
The state visit of Charles and Camilla will continue on Wednesday with a trip to New York to pay tribute to the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks and a meeting with the city’s mayor, Zohran Mamdani. It will conclude on Thursday, after a visit by the British sovereign, an active defender of nature throughout his life, to one of the natural parks in the State of Virginia.
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