King Charles on Tuesday highlighted the UK’s response to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the US, remarks that came as President Donald Trump assails London’s refusal to join his war on Iran.
“In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, when North Atlantic Treaty Organization invoked Article 5 for the first time, and the United Nations Security Council was united in the face of terror, we answered the call together-as our people have done so for more than a century, shoulder to shoulder, through two World Wars, the Cold War, Afghanistan and moments that have defined our shared security,” Charles said during a joint address to Congress.
Charles was referring to NATO’s mutual defense clause, which treats an attack on any member as an attack on all. The only time it has been invoked was after the Sept. 11 attacks as allies moved to support the US.
Twenty-five years later, the transatlantic allies now find themselves on opposite sides of Trump’s war on Iran.
The US president has repeatedly launched broadsides against UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer for his refusal to join the war against Iran, saying “he hasn’t been supportive. And I think it’s a big mistake.”
“Unfortunately, Keir is not Winston Churchill,” Trump said March 17 as he hosted Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin.
The US-UK divide over Iran has only grown after Trump imposed a blockade on all ships transiting the Strait Hormuz that are either bound for or have departed Iranian ports. Starmer’s government rejected the action while also criticizing Iran’s efforts to restrict navigation through the strategic waterway.
“We must get the strait reopened fully and unconditionally. Freedom of navigation must be restored in line with international law,” UK Minister of State for Europe, North America and Overseas Territories Stephen Doughty told the UN Security Council Monday.
Charles and Camilla are on a state visit to the US from April 27 to 30 at Trump’s invitation. The visit marks Charles’s first state visit to the US as monarch and comes ahead of events planned to commemorate the 250th anniversary of American independence in 2026.
