He’s on his way: Theresa May confirms Trump will visit UK in 2018
US President Donald Trump’s UK visit appears to be back on the cards, despite his embarrassing snub of the British invitation earlier this month. Downing Street confirmed talks are underway to host POTUS later in the year.
The US president said on Thursday that he and UK PM Theresa May “will talk about” his visit to the UK, as the pair are currently rubbing shoulders with fellow global leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
At the conclusion of a joint press conference at the political summit on Thursday, a reporter asked the Trump if he would be visiting the UK any time soon.
Trump guestured to May and said: “We will talk about it. We will talk about that.” May nodded.
The State Visit, Donald Trump UK edition. Coming to a theater near you, 2018.
— Hadas Gold (@Hadas_Gold) January 25, 2018
Number 10 confirmed officials in the US and UK had been instructed to “work together on finalizing the details of a visit by the president to the UK later this year.”
Trump has reportedly been putting off his UK visit in the face of massive opposition from the British public. More than 1.8 million Britons have signed a petition demanding POTUS be blocked from visiting.
Protesting Trump's visit is not just about protesting Trump (we have terrible heads of state visit all the time), but about telling OUR government we do not want to be poodle to Trump's America. https://t.co/lNfeDrhlhj
— The Mushy Pea (@TheMushyPea) January 25, 2018
The petition was presented to parliament in February last year. It was ignored and the invitation remained in place.
Trump was initially scheduled to visit London in February this year to cut the ribbon on the brand new US Embassy. Trump then decided he will not attend the opening as he does not approve of the new embassy’s Nine Elms location; south of the River Thames and slightly outside the center of London.
Reason I canceled my trip to London is that I am not a big fan of the Obama Administration having sold perhaps the best located and finest embassy in London for “peanuts,” only to build a new one in an off location for 1.2 billion dollars. Bad deal. Wanted me to cut ribbon-NO!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2018
Despite this, the UK-US special relationship seems to be recovering, with May and Trump discussing a multitude of topics in Davos, including Brexit, the fight against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), and the future of jobs at aerospace manufacturer Bombardier.
Trump's state visit to the UK might be back on. From a Downing Street spokesperson: “The PM and President concluded by asking officials to work together on finalising the details of a visit by the President to the UK later this year.”
— Philip Crowther (@PhilipinDC) January 25, 2018
During their join press conference, Trump told May that the US and UK militaries are “joined at the hip.” He told her “there’s nothing that would happen to you [where] we wouldn’t be there to fight for you. You know that.”
“We continue to have that really special relationship,” May replied.
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