Donald Trump has ‘gone cool’ on Britain since King Charles welcomed Volodymyr Zelensky to Sandringham, diplomatic sources in Washington have claimed.
Allies of the US President have informed UK officials in America that photographs of the King with the Ukrainian leader caused the President to feel ‘less special’ about the invitation for a state visit to Britain extended to the monarch.
In response, the Trump allies were told that it would have been inappropriate for the Government to ‘direct’ the King not to meet Mr Zelensky.
The King held a meeting with Mr. Zelensky the previous Sunday, shortly after Sir Keir Starmer had delivered an invitation from Charles to Mr. Trump for an official visit to London.
This display of unity occurred immediately following a dispute in the Oval Office between Mr. Zelensky and Mr. Trump, during which the US President, along with Vice-President JD Vance, criticized him for what they perceived as a lack of respect and appreciation for American assistance.
Then, on Monday, Charles also welcomed Canada’s prime minister Justin Trudeau to Sandringham – at a time when Mr Trudeau is reeling from Mr Trump’s announcement of 25 per cent tariffs on imports from his country.
Last night, No 10 said that it ‘did not recognise’ the claims that Mr Trump was sulking over the meetings, but a well-placed source said: ‘Things definitely went a bit cool in Washington after Sandringham. We told them that the King makes his own decisions about who he meets’.
Mr Zelensky flew to Charles’ Norfolk home in a military helicopter after attending a defence summit with European leaders hosted by the Prime Minister.
The overt show of solidarity came in the immediate aftermath of the row in the Oval Office between Mr Zelensky and Mr Trump, in which the US President ganged up with Vice-President JD Vance to berate him for his supposed lack of respect and gratitude for American help
The King met Mr Zelensky last Sunday, just days after Sir Keir Starmer had presented Mr Trump with an invitation from Charles to fly to London for an official visit
The pair had met previously during Mr Zelensky’s visit to the UK in February 2023, when the King told him ‘we’ve all been worried about you and thinking about your country for so long’
President Trump previously met the now-monarch when he was Prince of Wales (pictured in 2019)
Whitehall sources were at pains to stress that the royal meeting was not a reaction to the Oval Office bust-up, insisting that it had been in the works for a while.
The pair had met previously during Mr Zelensky’s visit to the UK in February 2023, when the King told him ‘we’ve all been worried about you and thinking about your country for so long’.
No 10 sources denied that Sandringham had caused tensions, saying that the Prime Minister had spoken to Mr Trump on Monday – the US President likes to call him directly on his mobile – and there had been ‘positive engagement’ between the two leaders.
President Trump had hailed Charles as a ‘wonderful man’ when Sir Keir handed him the official invitation in the White House.
Sir Keir’s handling of the Ukraine crisis was yesterday praised by former Tory defence secretary Ben Wallace, who said: ‘I’ve seen good leadership from both Keir Starmer and [French] president Macron on this and they should both be congratulated.’
Sir Ben said that Mr Trump’s decision to suspend US intelligence sharing with Kyiv was ‘suffocating’ Ukrainian hope of holding out against Russian aggression, and the Prime Minister should be ‘working out what the Americans have switched off, and finding European sources, or even further afield, to replace it’.
He added: ‘Hope is the most important thing in this type of conflict and, at the moment, Donald Trump is suffocating the hope that Putin can be either fought to a standstill or indeed brought to the table.
‘Hope is always the key for both morale and a military campaign. When this started three years ago, I remember gathering the military officials in my then department, and saying on day one, we have to give the Ukrainians hope. If a Russian truck has a puncture, we need to let people know. If the Russians have a small defeat, we need to let the Ukrainian people know.’
Donald Trump has ‘gone cool’ on Britain since King Charles welcomed Volodymyr Zelensky to Sandringham, diplomatic sources in Washington have claimed (pictured with Sir Keir Starmer)
The Ukrainian leader and US President came to blows in front of the world’s media
President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met at the White House to sign a mineral rights agreement
A Government spokesman said: ‘We do not recognise these reports. We have been unequivocal about the importance of the US as an ally of the UK.
‘No two countries are as closely aligned as ours on economic, defence, security and intelligence interests, and we share deep historic and cultural ties.
‘We will continue to work hand-in-hand and look forward to welcoming President Trump.’
Yesterday Russia pounded Ukraine with another drone blitz. The attacks left 25 dead and, said Kyiv, demonstrated that the Kremlin’s war goals are unchanged despite pressure from the US to resolve the conflict.
In the worst aerial assault 11 people died and 40 were wounded in Dobropillia in eastern Donetsk.
Polish prime minister Donald Tusk said this is ‘what happens when someone appeases barbarians’, adding that it results in ‘more bombs, more aggression’.
