King Charles III arrives at the White House on a delicate mission to
restore the UK-US relationship
[April 28, 2026]
By DARLENE SUPERVILLE and JILL LAWLESS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two and a half centuries after the American colonies
declared independence from Britain under King George III, his descendant
King Charles III arrived at the White House on Monday with
trans-Atlantic ties under strain and security in the spotlight.
Trump and first lady Melania Trump greeted Charles and Queen Camilla as
they arrived, posing for photos and exchanging small talk before they
went inside for tea in the Green Room. Afterward, the couples went down
to the south grounds to see a new beehive in the shape of the White
House that the first lady had installed last week.
Charles and Camilla both support beekeeping. He keeps at least three
beehives at his private residence in England as part of his support for
the environment and sustainability.
After the White House visit, the royal couple attended a garden party at
the British Embassy.
Trump praises the king but derides Starmer
A rift between the U.K. government and Trump over issues including the
Iran war had already raised the political stakes for the British
monarch's visit.
In recent weeks, Trump has lambasted Prime Minister Keir Starmer over
his unwillingness to join U.S. military attacks on Iran, dismissing
Britain’s leader as “not Winston Churchill,” the World War II prime
minister who coined the phrase “special relationship” for the U.K.-U.S.
bond.
It's part of a wider rift between Trump and the United States’ NATO
allies, whom he has called “cowards” and “useless” for not joining
action against Iran. A leaked Pentagon email suggested the U.S. could
reassess support for the U.K.'s sovereignty over the Falkland Islands in
the south Atlantic. Britain and Argentina fought a 1982 war over the
islands, also known as the Islas Malvinas.
The president insists the political chill won’t affect the royal visit.
Charles “has nothing to do with that,” Trump said in March, meaning
NATO.
The president has spoken in glowing terms about Charles, repeatedly
referring to the monarch as his “friend” and a “great guy.”
He also continues to mention his “amazing” trip to the U.K. in September
with Melania Trump for an unprecedented second state visit. Starmer
hand-delivered the invitation from the king in the Oval Office five
weeks after Trump returned to office, in a very public attempt to woo
the Republican president.
The U.K. royal family laid on pomp and pageantry for the Trumps, with
scarlet-clad guardsmen, brass bands and a sumptuous 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, meanwhile, told the BBC that the king’s visit could “absolutely”
help repair the trans-Atlantic relationship.
“He’s fantastic. He’s a fantastic man. Absolutely the answer is yes,”
the president said.
Some called for the trip to be canceled
Kristofer Allerfeldt, a University of Exeter professor specializing in
American history, said the two governments have very different
objectives for the trip.
He said that for Charles, the trip is about “reinforcing long-term ties,
showcasing the monarchy’s soft power and reminding the world that
Britain still carries diplomatic weight.”
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First lady Melania Trump and Britain's King Charles III talk during
a tour of the White House garden and bee hive on the South Lawn of
the White House, Monday, April 27, 2026, in Washington. (AP
Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)
For Trump, it’s more about “a media event,” with emphasis on the
optics of a visit that resembles a meeting of “two gilded monarchs.”
Some U.K. politicians worry that the trip is fraught with
opportunities for embarrassment. Trump’s recent broadsides at Pope
Leo XIV have heightened those concerns.
Ed Davey, leader of the U.K. centrist opposition Liberal Democrats
party, earlier this month called Trump “a dangerous and corrupt
gangster” and implored the government to cancel the trip.
“I really fear for what Trump might say or do while our king is
forced to stand by his side,” Davey said in the House of Commons.
“We cannot put His Majesty in that position.”
Starmer defended the visit, saying “the monarchy, through the bonds
that it builds, is often able to reach through the decades” and
bolster important relationships.
Andrew and Epstein cast a shadow
Raising the stakes is the shadow of the king’s younger brother
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who has been stripped of his royal title
of Prince Andrew, exiled from public life and put under police
investigation over his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. He has
denied committing any crimes.
Epstein victims have urged the king to meet with them and other
sexual abuse survivors. It's unlikely he will do so.
Charles has visited the U.S. 19 times, but this is his first state
visit to the country since becoming king in 2022. His mother, Queen
Elizabeth II, made four state visits to the U.S.
The king, who is 77 and was diagnosed in early 2024 with an
undisclosed form of cancer, will spend four days in the U.S.
accompanied by Queen Camilla.
In Washington on Tuesday, the king and queen will attend a formal
White House state dinner.
The royal couple will also visit the Sept. 11 memorial in New York
and attend a 250th birthday block party in Virginia, where Charles
will also meet Indigenous leaders involved in nature conservation —
a favorite cause of the environmentalist king.
Three centuries after Britain’s kings and queens gave up any real
political power, the royals remain symbols of soft power, deployed
by elected governments to smooth international relationships and
send messages about what the U.K. considers important.
A key moment will be the king’s speech to the U.S. Congress on
Tuesday. It’s only the second time, after Queen Elizabeth II in
1991, that a U.K. monarch has addressed a joint meeting of both
houses.
Elizabeth praised liberalism on that trip, spoke against the idea
that “power grows from the barrel of a gun” and praised the “rich
ethnic and cultural diversity of both our societies.”
The king’s treasured causes, including the environment and harmony
among religious faiths, are in contrast to Trump’s. He's unlikely to
accentuate differences, but Allerfeldt said that, in the monarch’s
subtle way, the king could use his speech to send a message.
“He does have an unorthodox way of looking at the world, and I think
maybe he can actually have something valid to say when he addresses
Congress,” Allerfeldt said.
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Jill Lawless reported from London.
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