London (AFP) – Washington’s envoy to the UK said Thursday it would be a “big mistake” to cancel King Charles III’s planned state visit to the US, following calls to abandon the trip over the Middle East war. It has been rumoured for months that the British monarch will visit the United States in April, but Buckingham Palace has not officially confirmed the trip. The plans have met with opposition, including from politicians urging it to be called off over the US-Israel war against Iran and President Donald Trump’s harsh critiques of UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
“I think that would be a very big mistake,” US ambassador to the UK Warren Stephens said when asked about the calls to cancel or delay the visit after a speech at the British Chambers of Commerce. “I think he will go and I think it will be a very meaningful trip for him,” said Stephens, who however could not confirm the visit. He also said the US House Speaker Mike Johnson had invited Charles to address both Houses of Congress during his visit. Should he accept, Charles would be the first British monarch to address Congress in more than three decades. Politico reported that the trip was set for the last week of April. If confirmed, it will be Charles’s first trip to the US as king, after hosting Trump for a lavish state visit last September.
The mercurial US president has frequently expressed admiration for Britain’s royal family, which threw him a full state dinner at Windsor Castle, military parades, and a flyover during his visit. The royal trip would come at a rocky time for the so-called US-UK “special relationship,” with Trump criticising Starmer’s reticence over the Middle East war. It has also been a tricky few months for the British royals. Charles’s younger brother, the former prince Andrew, was arrested last month on suspicion of misconduct in public office, following the latest US release of files linked to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
A YouGov poll published Thursday found nearly half of British citizens opposed the visit to the US, with only a third saying it should go ahead. Emily Thornberry, a senior MP in Starmer’s ruling Labour party, said earlier this month it would be “safer to delay” the visit. She warned that Charles and his wife, Queen Camilla, could be left feeling “embarrassed” because of the ongoing conflict. “Why are we rewarding Donald Trump with a state visit from our king?” asked Ed Davey, leader of the minority opposition Liberal Democrats party.
© 2024 AFP
