Keir Starmer issues update on King's Royal visit to USA after Donald Trump criticism
The royals are due to visit the US at the end of this month
The Prime Minister has confirmed that the King's upcoming state visit to the United States will proceed as planned, despite a scathing assessment from opposition leaders who labelled Donald Trump a "dangerous and corrupt gangster".
The King and Queen are scheduled to meet with the US President in late April to commemorate the 250th anniversary of American independence. However, the diplomatic mission has sparked a fierce debate in the House of Commons over the risks of placing the monarchy alongside the current American administration.
The controversy reached a fever pitch on Monday (13 April) when Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey urged the Government to scrap the trip.
Sir Ed argued that the King should not be "forced" to stand beside a leader he described as reckless, immoral, and a threat to international law.
He specifically cited the President's recent rhetoric regarding the potential destruction of "a whole civilization" in Iran, telling MPs: "I really fear for what Trump might say or do while our King is forced to stand by his side. We cannot put His Majesty in that position."
While Sir Keir Starmer remained firm on the visit’s necessity, he took the rare step of publicly rebuking the President's language.
Addressing the House on Monday, he said: "In relation to the language about destroying a civilisation, could I really be clear with this House – that was wrong. A threat to Iranian civilians in that way is wrong.
"These are civilians, let’s remember, who’ve suffered immeasurable harm by the regime in Iran for many, many, long years," the Prime Minister added. "That’s why they’re words and phrases that I would never use on behalf of this Government, which is guided by our principles and our values throughout all this."
In relation to the King’s visit, he said: "The relationship between our two countries is very important on a number of levels, and often what the monarchy is able to do, through the bonds that they build, is reach through the decades in a situation like this.
"And the purpose of the visit is to mark the 250th anniversary of the relationship between our country and the United States. That’s why the visit is going ahead."
Sir Keir's comments come just hours after his American counterpart launched a verbal attack against Pope Leo on social media. Writing on his Truth Social platform, Trump described the pontiff as "Weak on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy".
Both King Charles and Queen Camilla spent considerable time with Pope Leo during a historic state visit to the Vatican last October.