Senior Royals May Embark on Royal Tour of U.S. to Renew 'Special Relationship’: Report

President Donald Trump has expressed an affinity for the British royal family, particularly Queen Elizabeth, in the past

Regine Mahaux/WireImage; Oleg Nikishin/Getty; Mina Kim - WPA Pool/Getty;  Chris Jackson/Getty U.S. President Donald Trump, Prince William, King Charles and Catherine, Princess of Wales

Regine Mahaux/WireImage; Oleg Nikishin/Getty; Mina Kim - WPA Pool/Getty; Chris Jackson/Getty

U.S. President Donald Trump, Prince William, King Charles and Catherine, Princess of Wales

The United States could play host to British royalty as soon as next year, a new report claims.

The Times reported Jan. 20 that Downing Street hopes to send senior royals to the U.S. in 2026 to meet with President Donald Trump and renew the U.S. and the U.K.’s special relationship, playing off of Trump’s fondness for the British royal family.

Talks are in early stages, the outlet reported, “meaning no offer has been formally made” — but, according to a senior U.K. government source, “Donald Trump has a clear affinity for the royal family. He had a great relationship with the late Queen, recently met Prince William and has spoken highly of King Charles. A royal tour to the U.S. would help reinforce the ‘special relationship.’ ”

HRIS JACKSON/POOL/AFP via Getty I U.S. President Donald Trump (2R), U.S. First Lady Melania Trump (R), Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (2L), and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, pose for a photograph ahead of a dinner at Winfield House, the residence of the U.S. Ambassador, where U.S. President Trump is staying while in London, on June 4, 2019

A stateside royal tour could coincide with events marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, according to The Times. Festivities for the semiquincentennial will begin on Memorial Day this year and culminate on July 4, 2026.

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“Playing up to [Trump’s] pro-monarchist tendencies is one of a number of important ways we can exert our soft power,” another source told the outlet. “You saw that during his first administration and can expect to see it again.”

For context, Queen Elizabeth went to the U.S. in 1976 to mark the U.S.’s 200th anniversary of its independence from Britain, where she spoke in Philadelphia and expressed the monarchy’s “sincere gratitude” to the U.S.’s founding fathers for having “taught Britain a very valuable lesson.”

David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip wave to the crowd at the Old State House during a visit to Boston, July 11, 1976
David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip wave to the crowd at the Old State House during a visit to Boston, July 11, 1976

The United States will also jointly host the Fifa World Cup in 2026, along with Mexico and Canada, which could help bring soccer-loving Prince William stateside, according to The Times, with one source calling it “another helpful opportunity for potential royal engagement with the U.S.”

Trump and the Prince of Wales recently met at the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on Dec. 7, and King Charles reached out on the day of Trump’s second inauguration on Jan. 20 to send a message of congratulations, reflecting the enduring special relationship between the two countries.

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In addition to senior royals coming to the U.S., The Times reported that discussions are also being held about offering Trump a second state visit to the U.K. — and, if it happens, it would mark the first time an elected leader would be given two state visits by the country. (Trump’s prior state visit took place in 2019.)

TOLGA AKMEN/POOL/AFP via Getty Queen Elizabeth views a display of U.S. items of the Royal collection with U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. First Lady Melania Trump at Buckingham Palace in central London on June 3, 2019

TOLGA AKMEN/POOL/AFP via Getty

Queen Elizabeth views a display of U.S. items of the Royal collection with U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. First Lady Melania Trump at Buckingham Palace in central London on June 3, 2019

Related: Donald Trump Remembers Queen Elizabeth: 'Nobody Like Her'

PEOPLE understands that any incoming or outward state visits by Trump to the U.K. or of senior royals to the U.S. are an option, but no plans are said to be on the calendar as of now. Foreign leaders are invited to visit the King on the advice and at the request of the British government through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, which also arranges overseas travel.

After Queen Elizabeth’s death in September 2022, Trump released a statement that he and his wife, Melania, would “always cherish our time together with the Queen, and never forget Her Majesty’s generous friendship, great wisdom and wonderful sense of humor.”

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“What a grand and beautiful lady she was — there was nobody like her!” Trump added.

Former White House Russia advisor Fiona Hill wrote in her book There Is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the 21st Century that Trump was “always slightly awestruck when he talked about [Queen Elizabeth] — his voice and his face would soften. A meeting with the Queen of England was the ultimate sign that he, Trump, had made it in life.”

DOMINIC LIPINSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty U.S. President Donald Trump and Queen Elizabeth during a State Banquet in the ballroom at Buckingham Palace in central London on June 3, 2019
DOMINIC LIPINSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty U.S. President Donald Trump and Queen Elizabeth during a State Banquet in the ballroom at Buckingham Palace in central London on June 3, 2019

Related: Melania Trump Says King Charles Is Her Pen Pal 'to This Day' in New Memoir

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For her part, Melania Trump wrote in her 2024 memoir Melania that both she and her husband remain pen pals with King Charles in an “ongoing correspondence,” writing that “our friendship with the royal family continues, and we exchange letters with King Charles to this day."

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