King Charles III heads to the United States on Monday for a landmark state visit, but transatlantic tensions over the Iran war and the shadow of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal threaten to intrude on the trip.
The four-day visit comes at the request of the UK government and President Donald Trump, according to Buckingham Palace, and will honour the historic relationship between the two countries as the US marks 250 years of independence.
However, Trump has repeatedly criticised British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over his opposition to the war with Iran, alongside his government’s immigration and energy policies.
“This is not Winston Churchill that we’re dealing with,” Trump said in March, adding the so-called special relationship was “not like it used to be.”
Starmer has stepped up his public criticism of the war while stressing the breadth of UK-US ties in defending the state visit. An early April YouGov poll found 48 percent of Britons support cancelling it.
Trump told the BBC on Thursday the visit could “absolutely” help repair relations, praising the king as “fantastic.”
Charles, 77, will be the first British monarch to address the US Congress since his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, in 1991. Royal Holloway University expert Craig Prescott said the king would likely address the “very big elephant in the room” in a coded way in his speech.
Meanwhile, the scandal around late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein threatens to encroach on the tour. Charles’s brother, Andrew, has faced a major crisis over his friendship with Epstein. Andrew was arrested in February following new revelations, though he has not been charged and denies any wrongdoing.
Several US lawmakers have urged Andrew to testify before Congress. Democrat Ro Khanna wrote to Charles in March requesting the king meet victims privately. Palace sources have told UK media a meeting “will not be possible,” arguing it could impact police inquiries.
Khanna told The Times that declining would make Charles look “out of touch” but added that acknowledging survivors in his Congress address “would go a long way.”
The visit, which will see the royals have tea with Trump and First Lady Melania and attend a state dinner, appears meticulously planned to avoid unscripted moments. Only photographers will capture Tuesday’s Oval Office meeting between Trump and Charles. The king and Queen Camilla will also visit New York and Bermuda.
