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Donald Trump has praised the “special relationship” between the US and the UK, as he hosted a ceremonial military welcome for King Charles and Queen Camilla at the White House.

Against a backdrop of recent tensions between London and Washington, the US president, speaking on the second day of Charles’s state visit, said: “In the centuries since we won our independence, Americans have had no closer friends than the British.”

He paid tribute to the “essence” of the “special relationship” in the wake of the second world war, saying: “That understanding of our nation’s unique bond and role in history is the essence of our special relationship and we hope it will always remain that way.”

Charles’s diplomatically sensitive visit comes amid public criticism by Trump of Keir Starmer over the war in Iran. Officials in Downing Street will be hoping the royal family’s soft power diplomacy can help heal the rift.

During the formal welcome, Trump said it was a “tremendous privilege” to host the royal couple, called Charles a “very elegant man”, praised the late Queen Elizabeth II as a “very special woman” and revealed his mother, Mary, had a “crush” on the king when he was younger.

The president and Melania Trump staged an unprecedented military ceremony for their royal guests, with Charles and Camilla watching the display in Washington DC with their hosts, alongside a group of invited dignitaries and hundreds of spectators.

The royal couple had arrived in Washington on Monday for the start of a four-day state visit to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Later on Tuesday Charles is expected to allude to recent strains between the UK and US when he gives a rare address by a monarch to the US Congress.

His speech to both houses on Tuesday comes after Trump had threatened to tear up a trade deal signed by the UK and US, mocked the Royal Navy and insulted the UK prime minister.

The king is expected to reflect that, while the UK and US have not always agreed on all matters over the past 250 years, the foundations of their “democratic, legal and social traditions” – stretching all the way back to Magna Carta – are such that “time and again our two countries have always found ways to come together”.

As Trump threatens to impose “a big tariff” on the UK if it does not drop its digital services tax on US technology companies, Charles will reference the importance of trade and technology deals that will play a vital part in the two countries’ continued economic partnership.

The king is expected to make brief reference to the assassination attempt against Trump at a Washington media dinner on Saturday night, and offer “the highest regard and friendship of the British people to the people of the United States” on the 250th anniversary of American independence.

During the welcome ceremony, Charles and Camilla stood on a dais with the president and first lady as the UK and US national anthems were played by The President’s Own United States Marine Band and a 21-gun salute was fired in tribute by the Presidential Salute Battery.

Senior members of Trump’s administration were among the guests, including vice-president JD Vance and his wife, Usha Vance, secretary of state Marco Rubio, secretary of defence Pete Hegseth and Steve Witkoff, special envoy for peace missions.