King Charles aims mending ties with Trump

WASHINGTON (AFP) — King Charles III will call for reconciliation with the United States during a rare address to Congress on Tuesday, as he and Queen Camilla continue a four-day state visit aimed at mending the transatlantic rift over the Iran war.

The day will be dominated by ceremony, with a 21-gun salute and troop inspection welcoming the royals at the White House. Charles and Camilla will later meet privately with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump in the Oval Office before attending a grand state dinner in the evening.

Charles will become the first British monarch to speak to Congress since his mother, Queen Elizabeth, in 1991. In a 20-minute address, he is expected to highlight the importance of “reconciliation and renewal” and defend shared democratic values as “crucial for liberty and equality.”

“Time and again, our two countries have always found ways to come together,” he is expected to say, marking the 250th anniversary of US independence from Britain.

He will also deliver a shorter speech at the state dinner, set in the White House’s State Dining Room — a space so small that Trump commissioned a $400-million ballroom for future events.

The visit comes amid lingering tensions after Trump publicly criticized Britain’s refusal to support his war in Iran. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who opposed the conflict, defended the state visit despite polls showing nearly half of Britons would have canceled it.

After Washington, the royals will travel to New York on Wednesday to visit the 9/11 memorial before departing Thursday for Bermuda.