Donald Trump’s 'working visit' to UK postponed, reports say
US diplomats have reportedly dropped Donald Trump‘s planned working visit to the UK.
Mr Trump had been expected to visit the UK early next year to open the new US embassy – although it would not have been a full state visit and he would not have meet the Queen.
However, even that trip has now been postponed, according to a report in The Daily Telegraph.
The site reported a senior US diplomat as saying: “The idea of a visit has obviously been floated, but not December and not January. I would not expect a Trump visit in January.”
The reported postponement comes amid a public spat with Theresa May over the President’s retweets of a far-right group.
But the diplomat told the Telegraph the two were not related.
On Wednesday Mr Trump retweeted three videos posted by Britain First deputy leader Jayda Fransen, causing widespread outrage.
Ms May said the decision was “wrong” and MPs queued up to condemn the President.
Mr Trump hit back on Twitter by telling the Prime Minister: “Don’t focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine!”
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Mr Trump did not know who Ms Fransen was when he retweeted her posts, and defended his actions.
Asked if Mr Trump had elevated a far-right group to prominence, she added: “I think what he’s done is elevate the conversation to talk about a real issue and a real threat and that’s extreme violence and extreme terrorism, something that we know to be very real and something the president feels strongly about talking about and bringing up and making sure is an issue every single day.”
Home Secretary Amber Rudd told the Commons on Thursday that in relation to the visit, “an invitation has been extended and accepted” but no date had been fixed.
