He explained that relations with King Charles remained strong ahead of his planned state visit, adding: “He is a friend of mine, a great gentleman… he honoured me and our country. I’ve known him as Prince Charles and now King… he has nothing to do with that. We’re gonna have a great state visit.”
The visit is expected to span three days and will be similar to the trip Trump made to the UK last year, according to a source who spoke to The Times late last month.
Later on in the debate, the US president launched a blistering attack on the UK, accusing the Prime Minister of making a “big mistake” over Britain’s response to the conflict in Iran. During the Cabinet meeting, the Republican leader claimed the UK had failed a crucial test of loyalty at a key moment in the crisis.
He fumed: “[Starmer] did something that was shocking. He didn’t want to help us… the longest bond, the longest ally. They weren’t there for us for a small time… They weren’t there, so what makes you think they’ll be there if we need them?
“They weren’t there, but if there’s ever a big one, I don’t think they’re gonna be there, and that’s not fair. I think we need to remember that as a country.” The president claimed the UK even refused permission to use a strategic location for US bombers, forcing American aircrafts to take a dramatically longer journey.
He went on: “When we needed the island to land that B-2 bomber, we were told we can’t use it… We had to fly back to Missouri, which is a 17-hour flight as opposed to two hours. They said, ‘You can’t use it’. I said, ‘Are you kidding me?’ They made a big mistake.
“It started with the island — he was talking about indigenous,” Trump said. “He was scared we’re gonna do something to insult them because he’s a liberal — that’s the way they think. He was there after we won.”
Trump also mocked Britain’s military capabilities, dismissing the offer of naval support as too little, too late. “The British said ‘we’ll send our aircraft carriers’, which aren’t the best aircraft carriers by the way,” he said. “They are toys compared to what we have.”
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