HAMILTON (Bermuda), May 2 — King Charles III spent a day in the British island territory of Bermuda on Friday after a high-stakes visit to the United States where he sought to heal strained ties between Washington and London.

It was the first visit by a British king to Bermuda in its 400-year history, Charles said—a history that involved making the archipelago a maritime hub of Britain’s transatlantic slave trade, which the monarchy has been pressured to address.

The king toured a museum exhibit on the slave trade and watched a dance with roots in the era.

“I’m told, to my amazement, it is also the first time in Bermuda’s 400 year history, the islands have actually received a reigning king,” Charles said during a reception at Government House in Bermuda’s capital of Hamilton. “So I’m terribly sorry it has taken so long.”

Charles was visiting the archipelago without Queen Camilla, who had accompanied him to the United States.

Early in the day the British monarch greeted a line of schoolchildren, pausing to chat with them, on the steps of the whitewashed St. Peter’s Church in St. George’s, the Atlantic Ocean territory’s first English settlement.

“Thank you for coming,” said one crowd member who held a miniature Union Jack flag.

“Get home safe,” said another member of the hundreds-strong crowd gathered in King’s Square.

One well-wisher wore a plastic crown speckled with imitation jewels as she filmed the gathering on her cell phone after a 21-gun salute.

Charles received a Royal Salute and the Royal Bermuda Regiment’s band played the national anthem before setting a more relaxed tone with Bob Marley and the Wailers’ song Jamming.

In Sandys Parish, the royal party was treated to a performance by Gombeys—dancers who maintain a folklore tradition with African, Caribbean and Native American influences.

Their vibrant costumes evolved from the era of slavery, when performances were restricted and painted masks helped conceal dancers’ identities.

Charles also visited Trunk Island, an island in Bermuda’s Harrington Sound where the local zoological society runs education programs.

Long a vocal conservationist, Charles appeared “right at home” on the island, Bermuda Zoological Society spokeswoman Robyn Bardgett told AFP, adding it was clear his passion for the environment was “completely genuine.”

Charles asked a society staff member “are you getting the message through?”

The king took “real time to chat with them about what (members) are learning about coral reefs,” Bardgett added.

Charles is scheduled to depart for the United Kingdom on Saturday.

Trump’s ‘greatest king’ 

The four-day US visit was largely seen as a success, with President Donald Trump serving as a solicitous host who honored the royal couple with a white-tie banquet at the White House.

“He’s a great king—the greatest king, in my book,” Trump told reporters as they said farewell.

Soon after, Trump announced he was removing tariffs on Scottish whisky “in honour” of Charles and Camilla.

The centerpiece of the US trip was Charles’s speech Tuesday to Congress, the first by a British monarch since Queen Elizabeth II in 1991.

The address was warmly received, even as Charles touched on subjects from climate change and the need for restraints on presidential power to the importance of Nato and defense of Ukraine—sensitive issues for the US president.

The 77-year-old king skirted around tensions between Trump and Prime Minister Keir Starmer over Britain’s refusal to join the war against Iran, insisting the partnership between the two countries was “born out of dispute, but no less strong for it.” — AFP

King skillfully appeals to Republicans fond of Britain and Democrats anxious about rules-based order in state visit

For his last trick, the king revealed a bell that hung from the conning tower of a Royal Navy submarine launched from a UK shipyard in 1944. Its name was HMS Trump. “And should you ever need to get hold of us,” Charles III said, “well, just give us a ring.”

The polished brass bell bearing the name “Trump”, presented at Tuesday’s state dinner at the White House, was an ego-flattering masterstroke that will have prompted groans in foreign capitals from Paris to Canberra to Tokyo. How can they ever hope to match that?

WASHINGTON, May 1 — US President Donald Trump said yesterday he was removing tariffs on Scottish whisky in honor of Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla as they wrapped up their state visit.

Trump's announcement as the royal couple ended their four-day trip to the United States represents a major trade concession to key ally Britain even as the Iran war strains transatlantic relations.

Shortly after bidding the British royals goodbye at the White House, Trump posted that he was making the gesture "in Honor of the King and Queen of the United Kingdom."

"The King and Queen got me to do something that nobody else was able to do, without hardly even asking!" Trump said on his Truth Social network.

Scotch whisky from the UK has faced a 10-percent tariff during Trump's second presidency. But the rate was on course to jump later this year when the suspension of an earlier 25-percent tariff -- part of a previous trade truce -- expires.

In his post, Trump said he was "removing the tariffs and restrictions" on whisky but added that it related to Scotland's trade with the bourbon-making state of Kentucky, particularly on wooden barrels.

But US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer later appeared to confirm the announcement applied to the alcoholic drink itself.

"The United States will allow preferential duty access for whiskey produced in the United Kingdom," Greer said in a statement.

He added that move was part of a broader trade deal announced by the United States and Britain in an Oval Office appearance by Trump last year.

Almost from the moment that Trump returned to power last year, Britain has been trying to make the case for whisky to be exempted from tariffs.

During Trump's first term, his tariffs in 2019 against the European Union -- which then included Britain -- also targeted the UK's whisky industry.

The United States remains the primary export market for Scotch whisky, accounting for $1.2 billion per year.

But the royal charm offensive by King Charles appeared to have paid off.

Trump hailed Charles as the "greatest king" as he waved him and Camilla off at the White House.

The visit was officially meant to celebrate transatlantic ties as the United States marks its 250th anniversary of independence from Britain, but much of Charles's time has been spent smoothing over tensions over Iran.

Trump has bitterly criticized British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over his opposition to the US-Israeli war on Iran. — AFP

President says decision made ‘in honor of the king and queen’ as industry officials call deal ‘significant boost’

In a gesture of diplomatic friendliness after King Charles’s visit to the White House, Donald Trump said the US would be removing all tariffs on whisky imports.

“In Honor of the King and Queen of the United Kingdom, who have just left the White House, soon headed back to their wonderful Country, I will be removing the Tariffs and Restrictions on Whiskey having to do with Scotland’s ability to work with the Commonwealth of Kentucky on Whiskey and Bourbon,” Trump said in a post on social media.