Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has urged Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to cancel the King’s planned state visit to the United States, accusing Donald Trump of waging an “illegal war” in the Middle East.
The monarch is scheduled to travel to the US in April to mark 250 years since American independence, but the visit has become embroiled in an escalating diplomatic dispute between London and Washington over the conflict involving Iran.
Sir Ed said the prime minister should advise King Charles III not to proceed with the trip while fighting continues. Writing on social media, he argued that the war had already fuelled instability across the region and driven up energy costs for British households.
“At a time when Trump has launched an illegal war that is devastating the Middle East and pushing up energy bills for British families, it’s clear this visit should not go ahead,” he said. A state visit, he added, would hand the US president a major diplomatic victory and should not be offered to someone who “repeatedly insults and damages our country”.
The comments come after a week of increasingly sharp exchanges between Washington and London. President Trump criticised Sir Keir for initially refusing to allow American forces to launch their first strikes on Iran from British bases, at one point mocking the prime minister as “not Winston Churchill”.
Downing Street later approved the use of UK facilities for what were described as defensive operations. The United States has since used RAF Fairford and Diego Garcia to support efforts aimed at preventing Iranian missile attacks in the region. Four American bombers landed at Fairford over the weekend as part of those operations.
Despite the tensions, officials confirmed that Mr Trump and Sir Keir spoke by telephone on Sunday. The call lasted around 20 minutes, during which the leaders discussed the developing situation in the Middle East and the military cooperation between their countries.
According to Downing Street, the prime minister also expressed condolences after the deaths of six US soldiers and the two leaders agreed to remain in contact.
Sir Keir has defended his earlier decision to withhold permission for the initial wave of US strikes, suggesting that authorising the attacks could have breached international law.
Meanwhile His Majesty’s Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Yvette Cooper, said the government would avoid “rhetoric or hyperbole”, insisting ministers would continue to focus on calm and measured decision-making as the crisis unfolds.
