Donald Trump has spoken about King Charles in a recent phone interview (Image: Getty)
Donald Trump revealed what he really thinks about King Charles in a bombshell phone call, during which he criticised Britain’s immigration and energy policies. Speaking to Sky News, the US President spoke about the King ahead of the monarch’s upcoming visit to America, describing him as “a great gentleman”, “a great friend of mine” and “a fantastic person”.
Trump made the comments in a conversation which took place just an hour after Buckingham Palace announced details of King Charles and Queen Camilla’s historic four-day trip to the United States. The King and Queen are due to spend the first day of the visit in Washington, where the monarch will meet the US President, before travelling to New York and then Shenandoah in Virginia. In a call with Sky News presenter Mark Stone on his personal mobile phone, Trump appeared enthusiastic about the visit and made clear his admiration for the King. However, despite his warm words for the monarch, Trump also launched into criticism of Sir Keir Starmer and the UK Government.
Donald Trump criticised Keir Starmer and the UK Government while speaking warmly about King Charles (Image: AP)
Asked whether his repeated criticism of the Prime Minister risked making things awkward for the King during the visit, Trump insisted it would not. He said: “No, not at all. I like Starmer.”
However, he then went on to criticise what he described as the “tragic mistakes” made by Sir Keir and his Government.
Trump was reported to be unusually downbeat about the UK-US special relationship and at one stage appeared unsure what he meant by the phrase.
Stone said: “His assessment of the British Government, of Keir Starmer and of Britain’s policies on immigration and energy was really quite surprising.
“We know he has talked about these sorts of issues before, but I felt his tone was different this time. He seemed really sad, which is how he described the special relationship.
“But then, almost in the same sentence, he was talking about how much he loved the King, how much he loved the Royal Family and how much he was looking forward to the state visit.”
Trump doesn’t believe his criticism of Starmer would make things awkward for King Charles (Image: AP)
Trump was also reported to have issued a veiled threat to the UK over the future of the two countries’ relationship.
Stone said: “He said to me: ‘Well, it’s been better, but it’s sad, and we gave them a good trade deal, better than I had to, which can always be changed.’”
Stone said the remark appeared to suggest Trump could revisit the UK-US trade deal.
He said Trump appeared unhappy with the state of the special relationship, Britain’s stance on Iran and the policies being pursued by the UK Government.
Stone added that he got the impression Trump believes Britain is “heading in the wrong direction”.
Speaking more broadly about the UK, Trump said: “I love your country. I would love to see it succeed, but if you have bad immigration policies and bad energy policies, you have the worst of both. You can’t succeed. Not possible.”
Stone was quick to challenge some of Trump’s claims, pointing out that countries such as Belgium and Germany have higher energy prices.
He also added that Trump “completely differentiates” the King and Royal Family from politics.
The US president also appeared surprised to learn the King’s Washington visit had been arranged at the request of the UK Government.
Stone addded: “He seems surprised by that. He didn’t seem to be aware that that is how it works.
“I think he thought almost as if the king was coming here because he wanted to come here.”
