By Michael Holden
LONDON, March 31 (Reuters) - King Charles will make a state visit to the United States in late April, Buckingham Palace said on Tuesday, a high-profile trip that the British government hopes will help to repair relations with Donald Trump, damaged by the Iran war.
Charles and his wife Queen Camilla will visit the U.S. in a long-planned trip to mark the 250th anniversary of that country's independence from British rule, before the couple pay a visit to Bermuda.
"Their majesties’ programme will celebrate the historic connections and the modern bilateral relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States," Buckingham Palace said, adding the trip was being made on the advice of the British government.
It will be the first state visit by a British monarch since 2007 when Charles' mother Queen Elizabeth made what was the fourth such U.S. trip of her reign.
RELATIONS STRAINED OVER IRAN WAR
Previously good relations between the U.S. president and Prime Minister Keir Starmer have been strained over the British leader's reluctance to get involved in the Iran war and refusal to let the U.S. use British bases to launch initial attacks.
While U.S. forces have since been permitted to carry out what Starmer calls defensive strikes, Trump has repeatedly criticised the prime minister, saying he was "not Winston Churchill" and had ruined the historically close alliance.
Trump has derided Britain's offer to send more military assets to the region.
As well as Iran, Trump has also changed his mind on a British deal with Mauritius to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, home to the strategically important U.S.-British Diego Garcia air base, calling it a great mistake, to the delight of some of Starmer's domestic opponents.
Starmer, a former human rights lawyer, has cast doubt on the lawfulness of the attacks on Iran, which are not popular at home and have raised concerns about rising energy costs.
But he has avoided any direct criticism of Trump and publicly stated that their relationship remained good.
ROYAL INFLUENCE
Since Trump returned to office, Starmer has used the soft power of the royals to mollify the U.S. president, who has been gushing in his praise for the king and his family, to keep him onside over the war in Ukraine and to soften possible trade tariffs.
Charles hosted Trump for an unprecedented second state visit to Britain last September, treating him to a carriage ride and state banquet at Windsor Castle where Trump hailed the special relationship between the two nations, a bond he then described as "irreplaceable and unbreakable".
Starmer will hope that the 77-year-old king can again help smooth the current turbulent relations, before heir-to-the-throne Prince William is expected to visit the U.S. in the summer during the soccer World Cup.
Trump said on Thursday the visit would not be affected by the fallout with Starmer.
"He's a friend of mine," Trump said of Charles. "He's a great gentleman."
The state visit will place the king in a tricky position, requiring him to praise a president who is deeply unpopular with Britons according to polls.
Furthermore, Trump's views on climate change are a world away from those of the monarch, who has spent a lifetime campaigning on environmental issues.
Charles could also face questions about his younger brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who is under police investigation for misconduct in a public office over his ties to the late U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, Britain's third-biggest party in parliament, has previously said the planned visit should be cancelled, saying Trump should not be given the diplomatic coup in light of his repeated insults of the country.
(Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
