State Visit

United States, alert rises for visit of Charles III. London: 'He will be protected'

British monarch's state visit to the US is marked by security concerns, with coordination between London and Washington to ensure diplomatic protection and stability

26 April 2026

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

The security alarm is rising, as if the "political risks" attributed to the mission were not enough, on the eve of the delicate state visit to the US by King Charles III and Queen Camilla: expected from 27 to 30 overseas for a trip that could be subject to some last-minute changes, in light of the failed attack on the White House Correspondents' Dinner.

Departure confirmed

The departure of the royal couple is not in question. But Buckingham Palace let it be known that talks are ongoing between the two sides of the Atlantic to assess possible organisational repercussions in the planning of part of the programme. It also stated that the sovereign had been 'kept fully informed of developments' in the Washington shooting and was 'very relieved that the president, first lady and all guests were unharmed'.

Spari alla cena dei giornalisti con Trump: il momento in cui il presidente viene fatto uscire

A relief that echoes that of Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the leaders of the various UK parties: unanimous in their condemnation of 'all forms of political violence', from Reform Uk's right-wing tribune Nigel Farage, a personal friend of The Donald, to the Liberal Democrat Ed Davey, unyieldingly anti-Trump.

Security concerns remain

However, the issue of the 77-year-old monarch's guardianship is coloured by further disquiet, given the chaotic images of the response to the attempted armed raid on the Washington Hilton Hotel where the dinner with the president was being held. The royals will be received at the White House by Donald and Melania Trump for an initial welcome a few hours after their arrival. The king will then give a speech on Capitol Hill, the seat of Congress, during the visit.

London's security services will provide 'appropriate protection in relation to the risk', in coordination with US colleagues, Starmer's right-hand man Darren Jones pointed out, pressed by the BBC.

Spari alla cena di Trump con i corrispondenti
Photogallery17 foto

The importance of the visit

The state visit has a particularly significant value, and not only because of the almost 20 years that have passed since the previous one by the late Queen Elizabeth II, dated 2007; or the 35 years that have passed since the one in 1991, which coincided for the last time with a solemn speech by a sovereign of the House of Windsor before the assembled Congress, as Charles will do again on Tuesday 28th.

This is evidenced by the Labour government's decision to promote it, and then to confirm it despite the controversy or requests for postponement that followed Trump's offensive tones against Starmer himself and British institutions in response to London's lack of direct support in the war on Iran. Almost effectively imposing it on the king.

For the prime minister, the hope is in fact that Charles can help limit the extent of the rift over the traditional 'special relationship' with the great American ally, leveraging the monarchy's fascination with the president-magnate: lavish in his praise of Elizabeth's eldest son, extolled as "a fantastic man", in spite of the barbs reserved instead for Prince Harry, his cadet son, mocked for having urged in all too politically explicit words "the American leadership to honour" its commitment to support Ukraine at war with Vladimir Putin's Russia during a recent trip to Kiev.

The Diplomatic Experience of Charles III

Charles III, for his part, knows however that he can count on decades of diplomatic and ceremonial experience. He has also carefully prepared for the mission, not least to manage the unpredictability of the tycoon's character and the potential embarrassments feared by many. While Downing Street is confident, among other things, in his discreet intervention with the president to ward off any hypothesis of reopening discussion on the thorny issue of the Falkland/Malvinas Islands, in favour of Argentina's claims and to the detriment of British sovereignty, which London continues to consider out of the question: a hypothesis that has just been exhumed by the Pentagon, among the possible punitive measures being studied in Washington against NATO partners 'guilty' of having distanced themselves from the Iranian front.