President Donald Trump arrived in Scotland on Friday for a four-day private visit that blends personal business with a series of high-level, informal talks with key European leaders. After touching down at Prestwick Airport aboard Air Force One, President Trump proceeded to his Turnberry golf resort, setting the stage for a weekend of golf and diplomacy that includes scheduled meetings with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Scottish First Minister John Swinney, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The visit immediately captured headlines as President Trump offered his first remarks on European soil, weighing in on topics ranging from a new US-UK trade agreement to European immigration policy.
A Packed Itinerary of Golf and Diplomacy
Upon his arrival just before 8:30 PM, President Donald Trump was greeted by Scottish Secretary Ian Murray and the US Ambassador to the UK, Warren Stephens. His journey from the airport to his luxury Turnberry resort in South Ayrshire was conducted via a significant presidential motorcade, which included his armored vehicle known as “The Beast.”
The president’s schedule is anchored by his personal business interests in Scotland. He is expected to spend Saturday playing golf at Turnberry before traveling to his second property in Aberdeenshire to officially open a new 18-hole course at the Menie estate. During his remarks to journalists, President Trump credited the late James Bond actor Sean Connery, stating, “Sean Connery helped get me the permits – if it weren’t for Sean Connery we wouldn’t have those great courses.”
Despite the private nature of the trip, the diplomatic agenda is substantial. President Trump is slated to meet with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday to discuss transatlantic trade relations. This will be followed by separate meetings on Monday with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Scotland’s First Minister, John Swinney, before he returns to the United States on Tuesday.
Meetings with UK and EU Leaders
The meeting with Prime Minister Starmer is particularly noteworthy, coming on the heels of a recently secured US-UK trade deal. President Trump offered praise for the new prime minister, remarking, “I like your prime minister. He’s slightly more liberal than I am… but he’s a good man. He got a trade deal done.” He emphasized the significance of the achievement, noting, “they’ve been working on this deal for 12 years, he got it done.”
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves echoed the importance of the relationship, stating the visit was in the “national interest” and that Prime Minister Starmer’s work in “building that relationship with President Trump” was instrumental in securing the trade agreement, which she said offers a “tangible benefit” to Scotland.
First Minister John Swinney has indicated he will use his meeting to “essentially speak out for Scotland” on matters of trade and business investment. He also intends to raise “significant international issues,” including the “awfulness of the situation in Gaza,” reflecting a different set of priorities from the Scottish government’s perspective.
President Trump’s Remarks on European Policy
President Trump did not waste time in making his views known on pressing European issues. He strongly criticized the continent’s approach to renewable energy and immigration. “Stop the windmills. You’re ruining your countries,” he stated, adding they were “ruining your beautiful fields and valleys and killing your birds.” This reflects his long-held opposition to wind farms, which included a failed legal battle to prevent a wind power development near his Aberdeenshire golf course.
On immigration, he delivered a stark warning, claiming that a failure to control borders would mean “you’re not going to have Europe anymore.” He characterized the situation as a “horrible invasion” and contrasted it with his administration’s policies in the United States, stating, “Last month, we (the United States) had nobody entering our country. Nobody. Shut it down.”
Security and Public Reaction
The visit has prompted a massive security operation across both South Ayrshire and Aberdeenshire. A large fence has been erected around the Turnberry resort, and numerous road closures and security checkpoints have been established. Police Scotland’s efforts are being bolstered by officers drafted from other UK forces under mutual aid arrangements.
The president’s arrival is also expected to be met with a series of protests, with demonstrations planned for Saturday in Edinburgh and Aberdeen. This continues a pattern from his previous visits, including a 2018 trip where a protester breached an air exclusion zone over Turnberry with a paraglider. First Minister Swinney has urged those planning to demonstrate to do so “peacefully and to do so within the law.”
The visit is a rare occasion, as sitting US presidents seldom travel abroad to promote personal business interests so publicly. It is also colored by President Trump’s personal connection to the country; his mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, was born on the Isle of Lewis before immigrating to New York.
This four-day trip serves as a precursor to an official state visit to the UK scheduled for September, where President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will be hosted by King Charles at Windsor Castle. The events and discussions of this weekend will undoubtedly set the tone for that more formal diplomatic engagement and future transatlantic relations.
