Trump to meet Queen, May on visit next week to Britain

US President Donald Trump will meet Queen Elizabeth and Prime Minister Theresa May at separate meetings on his visit next week to Britain.

The US President itinerary will avoid central London where hundreds of thousands of people are expected at a rally to protest about his visit, Xinhua news agency reported.

American and British officials insisted his programme had not been deliberately arranged to avoid protest areas.

US Ambassador to Britain Woody Johnson told the media here on Friday there was no deliberate plan to keep Trump out of the capital or away from protests, saying the president was focused on his objectives.

The US President is due to arrive on Thursday afternoon (July 12), straight from the NATO summit.

May will host Trump and the First Lady for a black tie dinner at Blenheim Palace on Thursday evening. Blenheim is famed as the birthplace of Winston Churchill.

Guests at the dinner include leaders from business sectors including representatives from financial services, the travel industry, creative industries, the food and drink sector, engineering, tech, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and defence.

During the dinner, the Countess of Wessex's Orchestra will perform a series of classic British and American hits.

At the end of the dinner, the US President and his wife will be ceremoniously piped out by the Royal Regiment of Scotland.

On Friday morning (July 13), Trump and May will visit a defence site to witness a demonstration of the UK's military capabilities and integrated UK-US military training. They will then travel to Chequers, May's country retreat, for bilateral talks on a range of foreign policy issues.

Later on Friday, Trump and his wife will travel to Windsor Castle to meet Queen Elizabeth.

On Friday evening, the President and the First Lady will travel to Scotland where they will spend the weekend.

--IANS

pgh/