King Charles III and Prince Harry are poised for a potential new flare up over their opposite stances to President Donald Trump.
The monarch, 76, has been a key pillar of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s effort to get the U.S. president on side, including over Ukraine and tariffs. And in that context, Charles wrote a lengthy letter inviting Trump for a historic second state visit, which previous presidents have not had.
Yet, Trump is persistently deeply unpopular in the U.K., disliked by 73 percent in a recent survey, running the risk the realpolitik might land badly with some Brits.
Adding to the pressure, Prince Harry made a rare veiled swipe at Trump and his Silicon Valley allies as he reverted to an idealist, rather than realist, position.
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King Charles’ Diplomatic Mission to Charm Trump
Unlike Harry, Charles’ position is defined almost entirely by his role, which requires him to put any personal views he may have to one side in service of the country’s national interest.
Ordinarily, that means avoiding controversy, but the disruption Trump has brought to international diplomacy has turned that situation on its head and thrust the king into the middle of a major diplomatic crisis.
Trump loves the monarchy and Starmer has repeatedly used the royals to warm the president to Britain, in stark contrast to the explosive interaction between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last week.
Starmer handed Trump the king’s invitation in the Oval Office on Thursday and said: “This is really special. This has never happened before. This is unprecedented and I think that just symbolizes the strength of the relationship between us.”
Trump responded by saying Charles “is a great gentleman, a great, great gentleman” and “a beautiful man, a wonderful man. I’ve got to know him very well actually.”
“We look forward to being there and honoring the king,” he added.
The king’s staff remember Trump’s last visit with fondness and got on with the president’s team, Newsweek has been told, and there is no doubt sincerity in the king’s warmth.
However, the president is highly unpopular in Britain on both sides of the political divide with YouGov recording in February that he was liked by 22 percent and disliked by 73 percent of U.K. adults. Even among Conservative Party voters, 63 percent disliked him.
Only those further to the right who backed Reform returned a positive net approval rating for Trump, with 66 percent supporting him and 28 percent opposed.
Labour leader Starmer, though, has taken a realist rather than an idealist approach to the president, putting Britain’s foreign policy interests above the strong opposition to Trump in the rank and file of his own party. Labour voters were 90 percent opposed to Trump in YouGov’s survey.
Some Brits reject the realpolitik approach, wanting instead to see public figures stand up to Trump.
And in that respect, there is a chance Starmer could drag the monarchy headlong into a major backlash, particularly with idealistic young people, whose support Charles is already struggling to maintain.
Prince Harry’s Idealist Swipe at Trump
By contrast, Harry appears to be inching his way back toward an idealist stand against not only Trump, but also the Silicon Valley kingpins around him, like Elon Musk.
The prince and Meghan Markle—it should be noted—engaged in a little realpolitik of their own when they stayed out of campaigning during the 2024 presidential election.
The move may well have paid off after Trump recently confirmed he has no plans to deport Harry for taking drugs, as detailed the prince’s book, Spare.
Needless to say, there are some signs Harry may be reverting to the idealism that characterized his first few years in America.
“Now, this would be a great time to talk about how a sickness in leadership across sectors, from politics to tech, can have a detrimental effect on millions, if not billions, of people,” he told the Upfront Summit in Los Angeles on Thursday evening, hours after the king’s invitation to Trump.
“When service to others is sacrificed for personal gain, when basic morals and empathy are abandoned in favour of power and control… but I’m not gonna get into all that now.”
Interestingly, Harry does not say he will never get into all that, just that he will not do it now.
And if Harry were to further shift to a position of openly opposing Trump in high profile speeches there is a major possibility he could wind up effectively opposing his father’s realist stance.
As unpopular as the prince may be in Britain, that could make the king’s already risky gambit even more dangerous.
Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for Newsweek, based in London. You can find him on X, formerly Twitter, at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek’s The Royals Facebook page.
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