Kathrine Frich
The president has also used his renewed royal friendship to criticize Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
When world leaders meet behind closed doors, the polite smiles for the cameras do not always match the mood in the room.
Sometimes a highly anticipated diplomatic chat ends up feeling like a chore.
That is exactly what happened during a famous royal encounter.
A tedious tea time
Donald Trump loves to highlight his warm ties with the British royals. He regularly speaks highly of the current monarch.
Things were not always so smooth. During a 2019 state trip to the UK, Trump sat down for afternoon tea with the man who was then the Prince of Wales.
The pair had drastically different priorities at the time. The British royal was a famous environmentalist, while the American leader had recently pulled his country out of the Paris Climate Agreement.
Rolling his eyes
A new book by journalist Susan Page reveals just how poorly that afternoon went. The details appear in her release titled The Queen and Her Presidents.
According to a summary by Hello! Magazine and cited by the Irish Star, the president complained to his staff right after the meeting. The topic of conversation had dragged on for too long.
Page wrote that Trump told an aide the chat was terrible. “Nothing but climate change,” the president reportedly complained.
His wife backed up that version of events. “Oh, yes, he was very bored,” Melania Trump reportedly confirmed with a laugh.
Changing his tune
Fast forward to today, and the political landscape looks quite different. The two men have met several times during Trump’s second term, including a Washington visit in April 2026.
The American leader now sings a completely different song about the monarch. When that recent spring visit wrapped up, his praise was glowing.
“He’s a great King. The greatest King, in my book,” Trump said at the time.
Taking aim at the Sussexes
The president has also used his renewed royal friendship to criticize Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Following the couple’s decision to move back to the UK, he shared some harsh opinions from the Oval Office.
On September 2, Trump told reporters he was “not a fan” of the couple. He claimed they were terribly disrespectful to both the late queen and the current king.
“I don’t know, maybe I’m different. I wouldn’t have taken them back. Frankly, if I were the royal family, I wouldn’t have taken them back,” Trump added.
Sources: Irish Star, Hello! Magazine, The Queen and Her Presidents
