WASHINGTON (AP) — US President Donald Trump and Britain’s King Charles III greeted each other warmly on Tuesday as the monarch began a day of diplomacy in Washington designed to emphasize a bond between the United Kingdom and the United States that is so strong it can withstand the political turmoil of the moment.

Trump welcomed Charles and Queen Camilla to the White House in a ceremony on the South Lawn. The king shook hands with members of Trump’s cabinet before joining the president for a rendition of the national anthem.

The leaders will huddle later in the Oval Office for a meeting that’s closed to the public, reducing the potential for the freewheeling, sometimes controversial meetings with foreign officials that have become routine during Trump’s second term.

Charles will later become the first British monarch to address the US Congress since his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1991. Her speech highlighted the shared history of both countries and the importance of their democratic values, themes Charles will likely reinforce on Tuesday.

Such addresses are an opportunity afforded to only the most prominent world leaders, including Pope Francis, Václav Havel and Winston Churchill. It will likely mark the most extensive public remarks Charles will deliver during a four-day visit to the US that’s intended to celebrate the country’s 250th anniversary of independence from Britain.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a........

© The Times of Israel