Britain’s ambassador to the US, Sir Christian Turner, has confirmed that “all appropriate security measures” are in place for the King’s state visit, following what the White House described as an attempted assassination of President Donald Trump. The incident occurred at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday evening in Washington.
Sir Christian said UK and US security teams had been planning the trip for weeks before the incident, with changes possible “as we go”. Buckingham Palace confirmed the visit would “proceed as planned” after discussions on both sides of the Atlantic and advice from the Government. Security teams worked through the night assessing the state visit after the president was endangered by shots fired outside the dinner.
While minor adjustments will be made to one or two royal engagements, the overall plan remains unchanged. The King and Queen are understood to have privately expressed sympathies to President Trump and his wife, Melania, and gratitude to security services who prevented further injury.
Charles and Camilla will arrive in Washington on Monday for a four-day visit marking the 250th anniversary of American independence and strengthening the UK-US relationship, which has been under strain. The visit is the most important foreign trip of the King’s reign and comes at a pivotal moment, with relations between Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and President Trump described as fractious.
President Trump has expressed affinity with the King, saying when asked if the visit could help repair strained transatlantic relations: “Absolutely. He’s fantastic. He’s a fantastic man. Absolutely the answer is yes.” The visit will include Charles addressing both houses of Congress and commemorating the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
