Donald Trump news: US President speaks as he arrives in Scotland to open new golf course, discuss trade
Air Force One - the presidential plane - touched down at Prestwick Airport in Ayrshire on Friday just before 8.30pm (local time).
Mr Trump was met by Scottish Secretary Ian Murray as he disembarked, before heading to the waiting presidential helicopter Marine One, bound for his nearby Turnberry golf course.
His presence is expected to spark protests across the country, with Scottish Police being forced to request aid from other forces to help increase manpower for the trip.
Mr Trump is set to spend time at his golf resort in Turnberry on Scotland's west coast, before heading to his sprawling golf property 320 kilometres away near Aberdeen in the east.
But it won't be all play and no work.
He will meet British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen who both want to talk about trade.
Mr Trump said Washington was also working hard on a possible trade deal with the EU, which he said was very keen to make a deal.
EU diplomats say a deal could result in a broad 15 per cent tariff on EU goods, mirroring a framework agreement with Japan and half of the 30 per cent tariff Trump is threatening to impose by August 1.
Speaking to reporters on the tarmac, Mr Trump said he'd be with his son and 'he's gonna cut a ribbon' for the second Trump golf course opening soon near Aberdeen.
Eric Trump, who now helps run the Trump Organisation, previously joined his father for the groundbreaking in 2023.
Although Eric did not travel with Donald on Air Force One, a Trump private plane was seen landing near Glasgow earlier in the day.
Mr Trump also used the opportunity to send a blunt message to Europe, saying, 'This immigration is killing Europe. And the other thing, stop the windmills.'
He added: 'Wind power generation is killing the beauty of your country.' His opposition to wind farms is longstanding, including previous legal efforts to protect views from his golf courses in Scotland.
On immigration, Mr Trump warned, 'On immigration, you better get your act together. You're not going to have Europe anymore.' He contrasted this with his administration's tough US-Mexico border policies, suggesting Europe needs to act decisively on immigration controls.
As part of the visit, he will open a second 18-hole course on the Aberdeen property named in honour of his mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, who was born and raised on a Scottish island before emigrating to America.
The White House has described the trip as 'private'.
Mr Trump's visit to Scotland is in the 'public interest', UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves insisted, pointing out a recent trade deal.
'That has a tangible benefit for people here in Scotland, whether it is people working in the Scotch whisky industry or people working in the defence sector, like here at Rolls-Royce, that trade deal means lower tariffs than any country in the world on things that we send to the US,' she said.
While in the UK, he will also meet Scotland's First Minister John Swinney, who had publicly backed Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the 2024 US presidential election.
'The Scottish leader is a good man, so I look forward to meeting him,' Mr Trump said.
Swinney flagged in an interview with PA that he intended to raise 'the awfulness of the situation in Gaza and the unbearable human suffering' with Trump.
'I intend to take that opportunity to make sure that Scotland's voice is heard,' he said.
The trip shows how the president has become increasingly comfortable intermingling his governing pursuits with promoting his family's business interests.
Mr Trump has described Scotland as a 'very special place' and made a similar trip there in 2016 during his first run for the presidency, but he will not necessarily get a warm welcome.
About 70 per cent of Scots have an unfavourable opinion of Trump, while 18 per cent have a favourable opinion, an Ipsos poll in March found.
His visit requires a major police operation that will cost Scottish taxpayers millions of pounds as protests are planned over the weekend.
The union representing officers is concerned that they are already overworked and will be diverted from their normal duties.
The overseas travel comes as Trump faces the biggest domestic political crisis of his second term in office.
Allies and opponents alike have criticised his administration's handling of investigative files related to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's criminal charges and the circumstances of his 2019 death in prison.
The issue has caused a rare breach with some of Trump's most loyal Make America Great Again supporters, and majorities of Americans and Trump's Republicans say they believe the government is hiding details on the case, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling.
White House officials, frustrated by the ongoing focus on the Epstein saga, are hoping the controversy dies down while Trump is abroad, one person familiar with the matter said.
with PA and Reuters
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