Donald Trump is looking forward to meeting his "long-time friend" King Charles after touching down in the UK for his historic second state visit

Stood alongside Stephens at the residence, Trump said: "We had a good flight, a lot of people came with us. Tomorrow's going to be a big day, Mr Ambassador.

"I love Turnberry, I love Aberdeen, I have a lot of things here that - they warm my heart, I wanna tell you.

"It's a very special place, great place."

Asked if he had a message for King Charles, the 79-year-old politician said: "We're going to see him tomorrow and he's been a friend of mine for a long time, and everybody respects him, and they love him."

Trump will be welcomed by members of the royal family at Windsor Castle on Wednesday (17.09.25) and described the location as the "ultimate" setting for such a prestigious occasion.

Speaking before flying to Britain, the president said: "My relationship is very good with the UK, and Charles, as you know, who's now King, is my friend.

"It's the first time this has ever happened where somebody was honoured twice. So, it's a great honour.

"And this one's at Windsor. They've never used Windsor Castle for this before. They use Buckingham Palace.

"And I don't want to say one's better than the other, but they say Windsor Castle is the ultimate, right? So it's going to be nice."

Trump is also set to meet UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on his three-day trip but insists that his visit is "primarily" to see King Charles and Queen Camilla.

He said: "They're friends of mine for a long time, long before he was King, and it's an honour to have him as King.

"I think he represents the country so well, I've watched, he's such an elegant gentleman."

Trump, Melania and his adult children previously enjoyed a state visit in June 2019 during his first presidency, with the business mogul enjoying tea with the late Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle.

Usually, US presidents in their second White House term are not offered full state visits but are instead given the chance to have tea or lunch with the monarch - as Trump's predecessors Barack Obama and George W. Bush were.