

LONDON — US President Donald Trump will visit the UK on July 13.

Trump's spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said on Thursday afternoon that Trump will make his first visit to the UK since he became president.

The news was confirmed by Downing Street in a statement.

"The President of the United States will visit the UK on 13 July. He will hold bilateral talks with the Prime Minister during his visit," a spokesperson for Theresa May said. "Further details will be set out in due course."

The trip will be a so-called "working visit" without the full regalia and royal status of a full 'state visit,' with officials keen to minimise the risk of disruptions and protests.

Trump's visit to Britain was first mooted in January last year, just seven days after his inauguration, when May extended him the offer of a state visit, something usually reserved for a president's second term.

But plans for a state visit have been subjected to repeated cancellations and delays, with May's attempts to woo the president complicated by his deep unpopularity in Britain and the threat of widespread protests.

Over 1.5 million people signed a petition calling for May to retract the president's invitation in January last year, while 67% of the population said in a recent poll that he has been a "poor" or "terrible" president.

Earlier this year, Trump cancelled a planned visit to open the new US embassy in London, criticising its move from the prestigious Mayfair to an "off location" at Nine Elms, in south-west London.

The president said the move was a "bad deal" for the US, but media reports speculated that the real reason could have been the widespread animosity towards him in the country.

The news that Trump will visit the UK appears to be an indication that relations between the two countries have improved since last year, when May criticised the president for retweeting anti-Muslim videos from a far-right British fringe group.

The pair reportedly spoke extensively on the phone last week as they discussed their response to the chemical weapons attacks in Douma in Syria.

The news of Trump's visit to the UK followed French President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to Washington, where the leaders demonstrated a close relationship.

There is still no fixed date for a state visit to the UK.