King Charles has presented Donald Trump with a relic from a British submarine that shares the President’s name, and which operated from Perth during World War II, just hours after the monarch talked up the AUKUS security partnership to the US Congress.
During an historic speech to American lawmakers, the King also declared he was proud to serve as Australia’s sovereign as he highlighted the importance of close defence ties in the so-called “special relationship” between the US and UK.
“Our defence, intelligence and security ties are hardwired together through relationships measured not in years, but in decades,” the visiting Royal told a special joint sitting on Capitol Hill.
“Today, thousands of US service personnel, defence officials and their families are stationed in the United Kingdom, as British personnel serve with equal pride across 30 American states.”
“We are building F-35s together. And we have agreed (to) the most ambitious submarine programme in history, AUKUS. And we do so in partnership with Australia, a country of which I am also immensely proud to serve as sovereign.”
In only the second address given to the US Congress by a British monarch, he declared to the audience which included Vice President JD Vance that: “we do not embark on these remarkable endeavours together out of sentiment”.
“We do so because they build greater shared resilience for the future, so making our citizens safer for generations to come,” he said to a standing ovation, as recent diplomatic tensions between the two traditional allies continue to play out.
Addressing a state dinner hosted later in his honour at the White House, King Charles playfully roasted the US President by suggesting that without British intervention in North America, his nation might well be speaking French.
As the heads of state traded jokes during their dinner toasts, Charles referenced previous comments by Trump aimed at European allies he accuses of freeloading on defence since World War II.
“You recently commented, Mr President, that if it were not for the United States, European countries would be speaking German. Dare I say that, if it wasn’t for us, you’d be speaking French,” the King quipped.
At the dinner coinciding with the 250th anniversary of US independence, Charles continued with a series of self-deprecating jokes, including a reference to British troops burning down parts of the White House during the Burning of Washington in 1814.
“We British, of course, made our own attempt at real estate redevelopment of the White House,” he said, drawing laughter from guests.
He also joked that the evening marked “a very considerable improvement on the Boston Tea Party,” referencing the historic protest against British taxation.
President Trump, a long-time admirer of the British royal family, responded with barbs of his own, mostly aimed at domestic politics, and congratulated the King for his address to Congress, noting: “He got the Democrats to stand — I’ve never been able to do that.”
During the formal white-tie gala event the King also gifted his host with the original bell from the British submarine HMS Trump, that was deployed out of Perth during World War II.
“There was one particular AUKUS predecessor, launched from a UK shipyard in 1944 that served for the majority of her life attached to the 4th Submarine Squadron in Australia playing a critical role during the war in the Pacific,” the King said.
“Her name? HMS Trump — so tonight, Mr. President, I am delighted to present to you, as a personal gift, the original bell which hung on the conning tower of your valiant namesake. May it stand as a testimony to our nation’s shared history and shining future.”
Gesturing to his host, the King urged the President: “Should you ever need to get hold of us . . . just give us a ring.”
According to Buckingham Palace, the gift is intended as a “symbol of friendship,” drawing a historical parallel to the 1976 visit of Queen Elizabeth II, who presented the bicentennial Liberty Bell to the US to mark two centuries of independence.
Last year King Charles also endorsed AUKUS while hosting Donald Trump for a state banquet at Windsor castle, where he told the visiting President the partnership “sets the benchmark for innovative and vital collaboration”.
British diplomatic sources have told The Nightly that the King’s public endorsement of AUKUS in September was carefully constructed to also help Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s White House discussions with the President the following month.
During the meeting in which Donald Trump assured the Prime Minister that AUKUS was “full steam ahead”, Mr Albanese also gave the President a gift of a model nuclear submarine with golden plates and finishes.
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