Trump greeted by King Charles for U.Ok. state go to in shadow of Epstein scandal

Video posted on X by The Royal Household account reveals King Charles and Queen Camilla inspecting the banquet desk the place friends can be seated at Wednesday night’s state dinner.

The video reveals lavish floral bouquets and desk place playing cards for President Trump and King Charles.

The desk is about in St. George’s Corridor in Windsor Fortress.

Several thousand people marched through central London Wednesday to protest the president’s trip. Carrying banners reading “No to the racism, no to Trump,” the crowd, organized by the Stop Trump U.K. coalition, headed down Regent Street on their way to Parliament.

The crowd booed a counter protester who held a sign that read “We Love Trump.”

London’s police force deployed 1,600 officers as they expected members of about 50 different groups that included climate, anti-racism and pro-Palestinian activists.

Many fewer people participated in the march compared to six years ago, when Mr. Trump visited London during his first term. This visit almost entirely avoids the capital, with the main events taking place at the royal castle in Windsor, a historic town about 20 miles to the west, and at Chequers, the prime minister’s country estate where Mr. Trump will meet with Starmer on Thursday.

The Trumps have a break in their public schedule for several hours until the state banquet, slated for 8:30 p.m. local time or 3:30 p.m. ET.

A state banquet was also held for the president at Buckingham Palace in 2019, hosted by the late Queen Elizabeth.  

A British Royal Airforce flypast over the castle emitted red, white and blue contrails, as a military band played below. White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino posted a video of the sight.

The president, the first lady and the royals sat as they watched, and listened to the military band play. The music came to a crescendo as the planes passed overhead.

President Trump has a very favorable view of the U.K., and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will try to use that to his advantage when the two hold a bilateral meeting on Thursday, British journalist Lewis Goodall told “CBS Mornings”. 

“Keir Starmer… he’s got things that he wants from President Trump,” Goodall told CBS News’ Adriana Diaz and Tony Doukopil. “President Trump seems to hold Britain in high regard, partly because of his own family background. His mother was from Scotland, of course, and he has generally treated us better in terms of all of the new tariffs, the tariff regimes that he’s put in place by comparison to the other EU countries.”

“Nonetheless, there’s still things that the British government would like, on things like aluminum and steel and cars and so on. Whether he gets that from President Trump is a very open question,” Goodall said. 

The two leaders are to meet Thursday at the prime minister’s country residence Chequers, following the pomp and pageantry of Wednesday’s events where Mr. Trump is being hosted by King Charles at Windsor Castle. 

President Trump and King Charles, along with first lady Melania Trump and Queen Camilla, climbed onto a small stage and took their seats on the sprawling grounds of Windsor Castle for a state military ceremony to mark Mr. Trump’s second state visit to the U.K. 

The scale of the military display was set to be record breaking in modern times, with The Associated Press reporting more than 1,600 service members taking part.

The planned flypast by military aircraft as part of the ceremony was parred back due to inclement weather.

The flypast by British and U.S. military aircraft that was due to take place Wednesday will be reduced due to rainy weather, CBS News’ partner network BBC News reported.

The U.K. Air Force’s Red Arrows aerial acrobatics jets were still expected to fly, putting on a display for President Trump and U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, according to the BBC.

The F-35 fighter jets that were expected to be a part of the flypast are now no longer expected to fly due to the weather, the BBC said.

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump paid a visit Wednesday to St. George’s Chapel on the grounds of Windsor Castle. Before entering, Mr. Trump pumped his fist to gathered reporters.

Inside, only hushed voices could be heard. The White House said Mr. Trump laid a wreath at the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II, who was laid to rest at the chapel.

Several members of the president’s administration and staff arrived at the chapel ahead of him, including Marco Rubio, Steve Witkoff, Scott Bessent, and Stephen Miller.

A choir was to sing the first movement from Vivaldi’s “Gloria,” before the presidential entourage returned to the castle.

President Trump and the first lady exchanged gifts with King Charles and Queen Camilla at Windsor Castle on Wednesday.

The Trumps gave the monarch a replica of President Dwight Eisenhower’s sword, as a reminder of “the historical partnership that was critical to winning World War II,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement.

The U.S. first couple presented Queen Camilla with a vintage 18-carat gold Tiffany & Co flower brooch. The brooch incorporates both the birthstone of the late Queen Elizabeth II — a ruby — and that of the first lady — a diamond.

The king and queen gave Mr. Trump a hand-bound leather volume made by the Royal Bindery at Windsor Castle to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, as well as the Union flag that flew above Buckingham Palace on the day of Mr. Trump’s inauguration, Buckingham Palace said.

The royals gave the first lady Melania Trump a silver and enamel bowl by artist Cara Murphy, crafted using traditional techniques, and a personalized Anya Hindmarch handbag.

The king and queen gave both the president and the first lady a silver picture frame engraved with the royal couple’s joint cypher.

The palace did not immediately release images of the gifts.

A few hundred people gathered outside the BBC television network’s headquarters in London on Wednesday to protest against President Trump’s state visit to the U.K.

One woman, dressed as the Statue of Liberty, held a sign that showed Mr. Trump’s face and another that said: “The Statue of Taking Liberties.”

One man said even though Mr. Trump might not see the protest during his visit, his own conscience demanded that he come out in defiance anyway.

In 2018, it was estimated that over 100,000 people protested against Mr. Trump’s first state visit to the U.K., and demonstrators unfurled a large balloon depicting Mr. Trump as an orange baby.

Today, that large balloon is in a museum, but a number of the protesters were carrying miniature versions.

By Haley Ott and Ramy Inocencio

President Trump has not yet met with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer during his state visit.

The two leaders are set to see one another, however, at the state banquet at Windsor Castle, on Wednesday evening, The Guardian newspaper reported. 

The leaders will meet again on Thursday at Chequers, the prime minister’s country residence, where they’re expected to view the Winston Churchill archives held at Chequers and then hold a bilateral meeting.

Nvidia, Microsoft and Google were among the U.S. tech companies to announce major investments in the U.K. as part of a “Tech Prosperity Deal” to be announced during Mr. Trump’s second state visit to Britain, boosting ties in AI, civil nuclear energy and quantum computing, according to the Reuters new agency.

Nvidia said it was sending over 120,000 graphics processing units across the U.K., as well as working to deploy up to 60,000 Grace Blackwell Ultra chips to U.K.-based Nscale, which will partner with OpenAI and Microsoft to create the U.K.’s largest supercomputer, according to the Reuters news agency.

Microsoft said it would invest the equivalent of $30 billion in the U.K. for the supercomputer and to expand AI and cloud infrastructure in Britain, Reuters reported.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will be participating in the state visit, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is reported to also be attending. 

“This is the week that I declare that the U.K. will be an AI superpower,” Huang told the BBC in an interview broadcast on Wednesday. Huang, along with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who also spoke with the BBC on Wednesday, lauded Britain as one of the most promising environments for tech start-ups in the world.

The military ceremony at Windsor Castle to welcome President Trump on Wednesday is the largest one staged for a U.K. state visit in living memory, The Associated Press reported.

Some 1,300 members of the British Armed Forces and 120 horses were taking part in the ceremonial welcome in Windsor.

There will also be a joint U.S.-U.K. military flypast, which is the first to take place during a state visit, the AP said.

“The joint flypast by U.K. and US F-35 aircraft is a demonstration of the strength of the U.K.-U.S. defense and security relationship,” the U.K. defense ministry said, according to the AP.

The carriages are now arriving at Windsor Castle, where President Trump and the first lady will join King Charles and Queen Camilla on a dais, flanked by the Prince and Princess of Wales.

The U.S. and British national anthems are being played and a Guard of Honor will give a Royal Salute.

Mr. Trump and King Charles will inspect the Guard of Honor, then the King and Queen will lead Mr. Trump and the First Lady into the castle.

President Trump and the first lady Melania joined King Charles III, Queen Camilla and the Prince and Princess of Wales in a carriage procession to Windsor Castle.

The carriages will take the group through the Windsor estate. The first carriage will carry Mr. Trump and King Charles. The second will carry the first lady and Queen Camilla.

In the third carriage, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel with Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.

A fourth carriage will transport other officials on Mr. Trump and the first lady’s teams.

As the procession began, the national anthems of both the U.S. and the U.K. were played by British military bands.

The route is lined by British military forces.

President Trump and first lady Melania arrived Wednesday at the British royal family’s sprawling Windsor estate, west of London, where they were greeted upon disembarking from the presidential Marine One helicopter by Prince William and Kate, the Prince and Princess of Wales.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived at Windsor Castle by car on Wednesday, not long before President and first lady Trump were due to touch down on the grounds of the royal estate by helicopter. 

Rubio shook hands with staff before joining other officials to wait for Mr. Trump’s royal welcome. The British news agency PA said security in the area was at peak levels, with two sniper positions visible on a distant roof.

London’s Metropolitan Police said 1,600 officers would be deployed in central London on Wednesday, including 500 officers assisting from other forces, according to The Associated Press. At least 50 protest groups were expected to demonstrate against Mr. Trump’s visit.

Ahead of President Trump’s state visit to the U.K., London Mayor Sadiq Khan urged Britons to reject “the reactionary populists and nativists who are exploiting economic concerns, the atomisation of modern life and a growing distrust of political and media institutions — something we have seen in countries across Europe and, of course, in the U.S.”

In an opinion piece for The Guardian newspaper, Khan, who’s long been a vocal critic of Mr. Trump, said the U.S. president “and his coterie have perhaps done the most to fan the flames of divisive, far-right politics around the world in recent years.”

Khan said that six years after Mr. Trump’s first state visit, the Trump administration’s “scapegoating minorities, illegally deporting U.S. citizens, deploying the military to the streets of diverse cities… aren’t just inconsistent with Western values – they’re straight out of the autocrat’s playbook.”

Khan said that while he understood the U.K. government needed to be “pragmatic” and maintain ties with the U.S., “it’s also important to ensure our special relationship includes being open and honest with each other. At times, this means being a critical friend and speaking truth to power — and being clear that we reject the politics of fear and division. Showing President Trump why he must back Ukraine, not Putin. Making the case for taking the climate emergency seriously. Urging the president to stop the tariff wars that are tearing global trade apart. And putting pressure on him to do much more to end Israel’s horrific onslaught on Gaza, as only he has the power to bring Israel’s brazen and repeated violations of international law to an end.”

President Trump and the first lady will be flown Wednesday by helicopter roughly 20 miles from central London, where they spent the first night of their visit at the U.S. ambassador’s official residence, Winfield House, to Windsor Castle, in time for lunch. After being greeted by the future king, Prince William, and his wife Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales, they will join King Charles III and Queen Camilla for lunch.

Later in the day Mr. Trump will lay a wreath at the crypt of the late Queen Elizabeth II, who died in Sept. 2022, before attending a musical performance and honorary military flyover at Windsor.

The night will be capped by a formal state banquet, hosted by the monarch.

The protest group Led By Donkeys projected an enormous video onto the walls of Windsor Castle Tuesday night, hours before President Trump was due to arrive at the royal residence, depicting what it called “the story of Trump and Epstein.” A video shared by the group on social media included the narration, carried over loudspeakers in Windsor, detailing Mr. Trump’s previous ties to the late financier and convicted sex offender.

The Thames Valley Police confirmed in a statement that four people were arrested in connection with the demonstration.

“We take any unauthorized activity around Windsor Castle extremely seriously,” the force said in a statement. “Our officers responded swiftly to stop the projection and four people have been arrested. We are conducting a thorough investigation with our partners into the circumstances surrounding this incident and will provide further updates when we are in a position to do so.”

President Trump landed at London’s Stansted Airport on Tuesday evening for his second state visit to the U.K. The President made his way to the official central London residence of the U.S. Ambassador to the U.K., called Winfield House, where he was asked by journalists how it felt to be back.

“I love it. I love Turnberry, I love Aberdeen, I love a lot of things here… they warm my heart, I want to tell you. They’re very special,” Mr. Trump said.

Mr. Trump has golf courses near Turnberry and Aberdeen in Scotland, which is part of the United Kingdom.

When asked if he had a message for King Charles III, Mr. Trump said: “We’re going to see him tomorrow, and he’s been a friend of mine for a long time. And everybody respects him and they love him.”