Donald Trump has reportedly been fuming since realizing that King Charles III no longer regards him as “special.”
This realization for Trump, an open admirer of the British royal family, has come in the past week after Charles showed solidarity with two of Trump’s biggest antagonists — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, according to multiple reports. Charles welcomed the two leaders to his private country estate, Sandringham, for friendly meetings and photos ops on March 2 and 3.
In a follow-up to these meetings, Charles was expected to use his annual Commonwealth Day address on March 10, 2025, to play “peacemaker” and call on nations to “come together in the spirit of support and friendship” rather than focusing on “differences” in “uncertain times,” the Times UK reported. Amid global instability and geopolitical discord over the war in Ukraine, Charles will urge world leaders and people to unite, the Times UK said.
Charles no doubt hopes those words will reach Trump. However, Trump was reportedly aggrieved that the king showered Zelenskyy with praise on March 2, just two days after his highly public Oval Office clash with the Ukrainian leader. Since Charles’ tea with Zelenskyy, Trump has “gone cool” on the UK, diplomatic sources in Washington told the Daily Mail. Trump allies made it “clear” to UK officials that smiling photos of Charles with Zelenskyy made the US president feel “less special” about the king’s invitation for a state visit to Britain, the Daily Mail also reported.
On the day of Zelenskyy’s visit, the front page of the right-wing The Mail on Sunday led with a story headlined “Now Stop the State Visit for ‘Bully’ Trump,” The New York Times reported. The story cited “a chorus” of members of parliament and other top leaders who said that the UK government should rescind its invitation to Trump to show their country’s solidarity with Ukraine and its displeasure with Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance for being rude to Zelenskyy in the Oval Office.
UK leaders said that Charles’ invitation to Trump for a state visit — delivered to Trump by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer the day before the Oval Office clash — should be put on hold until Trump has made assurances about Ukraine’s security in the face of Russia’s aggression, the Daily Mail also reported.
Meanwhile, it also may be irksome to Trump that Charles is said to be “concerned” about the president’s treatment of Canada, for which Charles is the ceremonial head of state, the Times UK reported. Trump has sought to impose sweeping American tariffs on Canadian goods, which threaten to cripple Canada’s economy, and he’s has repeatedly made menacing comments about wanting to annex America’s northern neighbor as its 51st state, The New York Times reported.
Prior to Canada choosing Trudeau’s successor on March 9, the outgoing Canadian leader met with the king at Sandringham on March 3 where, he said on X, they “spoke about matters of importance to Canadians — including, above all, Canada’s sovereign and independent future.” The symbolism of Charles, smiling as he greeted a prime minister whom Trump refers to as “governor,” “was lost on no one,” The New York Times said.
Charles’ invitation to Trump, followed by his meetings with Zelenskyy and Trudeau, show that the king is “stepping up” his role as diplomat — albeit a “quiet” one who has to stay as apolitical as possible, according to The New York Times. As monarch, he is constitutionally bound to remain “above politics,” allowing him top play a valuable role as “an agent” of British “soft power,” royal watchers say, according to The New York Times.
Generally, if Charles meets with world leaders, it is at the behest of the British government, reports say. At the same time, it was pointed out to Trump officials in Washington that the king would not have heeded their wish to not meet with Zelenskyy or to not show his solidarity with Ukraine, according to the Daily Mail. Charles has been demonstrative in his support for Ukraine defending itself against Russian aggression, issuing statements and making regular visits to relief organizations that help refugees from the war, as The New York Times pointed out.
While the UK government has denied that Trump was “sulking” because of Charles’ meeting with Zelenskyy, a “well-placed” government source, told the Daily Mail: “Things definitely went a bit cool in Washington after Sandringham. We told them that the king makes his own decisions about who he meets.”
Such is Charles’ “soft power,” according to royal watchers. Following his meetings with both Zelenskyy and Trudeau, Ed Owens, a royal historian, told The New York Times that “It’s been a really interesting week in British and royal diplomacy.”
Owens even suggested that Starmer has “wielded” the king and the monarchy in his interactions with Trump. As Starmer hopes to serve as “a bridge” between Europe and the United States over Ukraine, the prime minister may be hoping that Trump will keep his well-established affection for the king, whom he’s called “a wonderful man,” and the royal family in the “back of his mind” as he deals with the UK over Ukraine, Owens said. In the immediate term, Britain hopes Trump will carry through with his vow on March 9 to “just about” to resume sharing intelligence with Ukraine after suspending it the previous week, before addressing it addresses the issue of the US resuming military aid, the Times UK also reported.
Starmer has thus far brushed aside calls for the visit to be canceled, while Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the status of the invitation, The New York Times said. Two sources “with knowledge of the palace” said it was highly unlikely that the invitation would be rescinded, given the ill will that would generate with the White House, the Times said. It’s possible that Charles and Trump could first meet less formally in Scotland, where the president has a golf club and the king has Balmoral, his castle where he likes to spend summer break. During that meeting, they could make arrangements for a state visit at a later time.
For the time being, the UK government is officially emphasizing the importance of US and UK relations, the Daily Mail said. “No two countries are as closely aligned as ours on economic, defense, security and intelligence interests, and we share deep historic and cultural ties,” a spokesperson said. “We will continue to work hand-in-hand and look forward to welcoming President Trump.”
—Martha Ross, The Mercury News (TNS)
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