The British monarch delivered a diplomatic masterclass on the trip, mixing praise for his host with subtle criticism
3-MIN READ3-MIN ListenAssociated PressPublished: 1:20am, 2 May 2026US President Donald Trump sang the praises of King Charles after the latter’s state visit this week. He even lifted some tariffs on Scotch whisky as a favour to the British monarch.
The king delivered a diplomatic masterclass on the trip, mixing praise for his host with subtle criticism. It’s unclear, though, whether it will make a major difference to a transatlantic relationship troubled by divisions over issues including the Iran war.
“In the short term probably yes, in the long term probably no,” said Kristofer Allerfeldt, a University of Exeter professor specialising in American history. But he said Charles had “definitely clawed back some of the prestige of the monarchy” in his homeland with his assured performance.
Like all royal visits, the four-day trip to Washington, New York and Virginia by the king and Queen Camilla was a carefully choreographed diplomatic event carried out at the request of the UK government. Timed to help mark the United States’ 250th birthday, it was a chance to heal rifts between the UK government and the Trump administration.
The president has lambasted Prime Minister Keir Starmer – whom he once praised – over his unwillingness to join US 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 UK-US bond.
