The state visit by Britain’s King Charles III to the US would take place as planned, Buckingham Palace said on Sunday, following a shooting at a Washington media gala.
The incident late Saturday at the annual dinner of the White House Correspondents’ Association came less than 48 hours before Charles and Queen Camilla begin a four-day state visit to the United States.
The palace said that Charles was “greatly relieved” that Trump, his wife, Melania and other guests were unharmed and later on Sunday said the trip would go on as planned.
“The King and Queen are most grateful to all those who have worked at pace to ensure this remains the case and are looking forward to the Visit getting underway tomorrow,” it said.
Earlier, senior UK minister Darren Jones told British broadcasters during a round of interviews that security teams in Britain and the US were “working closely to ensure the security arrangements are put appropriately in place” for the state visit.
It is understood the king and queen reached out privately to the Trumps to express their sympathies with those impacted Saturday night, and to share their gratitude to the security services who prevented further injury.
Trump has said one law enforcement officer was shot at close range but appeared not to be critically injured.
During the four-day state visit — organised to honour the historic relationship between Britain and the US as America marks 250 years of independence — Charles and Camilla will visit Washington and New York.
Charles will become the first British monarch to address Congress since his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, in 1991, while the royal couple will have tea with Trump and Melania and attend a state dinner.
