Reports suggest US President Donald Trump may call upon Her Highness the Queen during his long-awaited visit to the K on July 13. It was confirmed by Kim Darroch, British Ambassador to the United States, who confirmed that the Prez will make a “working visit” to the UK, following a Nato summit in Brussels. The meet will also include bilateral talks with Theresa May.
While full details of the trips are yet to be announced, several reports have suggested that Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, and Balmoral are locations for the royal encounter. There are also reports that it won't be a full state visit Trump was promised when May visited Washington last year. However, Downing Street has insisted the invitation for a full state visit still stands, but there is no timetable for it to take place. A spokesperson said, “Further details will be set out in due course.”
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson welcomed the visit by tweeting, “FANTASTIC news that President @realdonaldtrump will at last come to Britain on 13 July. Looking forward to seeing our closest ally and friend on the GREATest visit ever.” London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who has had past brush ups with Trump, tweeted, “If he comes to London, President Trump will experience an open and diverse city that has always chosen unity over division and hope over fear. He will also no doubt see that Londoners hold their liberal values of freedom of speech very dear.”
Also, Trump has been warned to expect protests during the trip. His supporters have also been urged to stay away from London in a bid to avoid mass demonstrations. Human rights groups have vowed to protest against the visit. Amnesty International UK's director Kate Allen said, “When Donald Trump arrives on these shores, we and thousands of our supporters will very definitely be making our voices heard. Since moving into the White House, Mr Trump has shown an impatience bordering on intolerance towards peaceful protests, the media and even the democratic process itself. So his visit to Britain will be an important opportunity to underline the importance of free speech and the right to protest.”
Also, six conservative groups wrote a letter to the President recommending him to focus his visit on his “ancestral home” of Scotland. Notorious for his aggressive and rash mouth, Trump had canceled a trip to London to open the new US embassy in Vauxhall earlier this year, stating the move to an “off location” south of the Thames had been a “bad deal”.
