WASHINGTON:&nbsp;King Charles III gave US President Donald Trump a taste of his own medicine at a White House state dinner on Tuesday when he joked that without the British, Americans would 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 defense since World War II. &quot;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&#39;t for us, you&#39;d be speaking French,&quot; Charles quipped. The king was talking about places with British and French origins in North America, where the rival colonial powers battled for control of the continent before US independence 250 years ago. At the Davos summit in January, Trump said that without US help in World War II, &quot;you&#39;d be speaking German and a little Japanese.&quot; But the king&#39;s lighthearted remark reflected the warm tone as he and Trump bonded over the &quot;special relationship&quot; between London and Washington, despite tensions over the war in Iran. He made further jokes at Trump&#39;s expense, saying he could not help noticing the &quot;readjustments&quot; to the White House East Wing, which the former real estate tycoon has demolished to build a giant $400 million ballroom. &quot;I am sorry to say that we British, of course, made our own attempt at real estate redevelopment of the White House in 1814,&quot; he said, when British soldiers torched the building. Charles also quipped that the dinner was &quot;a very considerable improvement on the Boston Tea Party,&quot; when colonists dumped shiploads of taxed British tea into the sea in 1773. Trump &mdash; an avid fan of the British royals whose mother hailed from Scotland &mdash; saved most of his humor for domestic targets. &quot;I want to congratulate Charles on having made a fantastic speech today at Congress,&quot; Trump said. &quot;He got the Democrats to stand &mdash; I&#39;ve never been able to do that.&quot; The king meanwhile came bearing a gift, part of a British charm offensive aimed at Trump after he lambasted Prime Minister Keir Starmer over his refusal to help against Iran. Charles presented the president with the bell from the British submarine HMS Trump, which was launched in 1944 during World War II. &quot;May it stand as a testimony to our nations&#39; shared history and shining future. And should you ever need to get hold of us, well, just give us a ring,&quot; the king said to applause.

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Addressing Congress during celebrations marking 250 years since American independence from Britain, Charles stresses the historic ties between the two nations, saying their partnership was born out of dispute, but no less strong for it.'

'You'd be speaking French': King Charles tells Trump at state dinner

WASHINGTON:&nbsp;Britain&#39;s King Charles III will receive a full ceremonial welcome from Donald Trump at the White House and deliver a rare address to Congress on Tuesday as he seeks to mend a transatlantic rift over the war in Iran. On the second day of a four-day state visit, Charles is expected to call for &quot;reconciliation and renewal&quot; in his speech, with the so-called special relationship between Washington and London under strain. Much of the day will be given over to pomp and ceremony, with King Charles and Queen Camilla receiving a traditional arrival ceremony that&#39;s expected to feature a 21-gun salute and an inspection of troops. The US leader and First Lady, Melania Trump, will then host the royals in the Oval Office behind closed doors. In the evening, they will return to the White House for a grand state dinner. The first day of the trip featured a more informal welcome, with the Trumps treating Charles and Camilla to tea and cakes in the White House before showing them beehives on the famed lawn. In a symbolic moment just two days after a shooting at a gala dinner attended by Trump, the US president showed off a painting of the assassination attempt he narrowly escaped in 2024. The royals then attended a garden party at the British embassy, with cucumber sandwiches and scones on the menu. But the second day will feature perhaps the most public-facing moment, when Charles becomes the first British monarch to address Congress since his mother, queen Elizabeth, in 1991. It comes at a hugely delicate moment, with Britain trying to repair ties after Trump raged over London&#39;s refusal to help with his war in Iran. &#39;Liberty and equality&#39;&nbsp;In the 20-minute speech, Charles is expected to appeal to Trump in guarded terms, saying that defending common democratic ideals is &quot;crucial for liberty and equality&quot; in a time of international challenges. The king will also stress the importance of the long-standing US-UK alliance, in a visit which marks the 250th anniversary of US independence from its British ancestors. &quot;Time and again, our two countries have always found ways to come together,&quot; he is expected to say. Charles, 77, will stress &quot;reconciliation and renewal&quot; over the past 250 years that has given rise to &quot;one of the greatest alliances in human history.&quot; Charles is also expected to give a shorter speech at the state dinner in the White House. It is expected to be held in the State Dining Room, whose small size prompted Trump to start construction on a massive and controversial $400 million ballroom. The UK government is hoping to capitalize on Trump&#39;s fascination with the royals. His mother hailed from Scotland, and Trump received a gala state visit to Britain last year. But it will have its work cut out to placate the mercurial Republican. Trump has repeatedly lambasted British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over his war opposition, alongside his government&#39;s immigration and energy policies. Starmer has publicly criticized the war, but defended the state visit. An early April YouGov poll found 48% of Britons supported cancelling it. The royals will visit New York on Wednesday, touring the 9/11 memorial, before departing Thursday for Bermuda.

With such tensions simmering, Charles will address a joint meeting of Congress on Tuesday, when he will tell US lawmakers that the long history between the two countries is one of "reconciliation and renewal," according to a released excerpt from the king's speech.

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'You'd be speaking French': King Charles tells Trump at state dinner

King Charles to urge Trump to 'come together' with Britain