In an attempt to escape the turmoil in Washington and the ongoing inquiries about the handling of the Epstein files, President Trump left for Scotland on Friday for a five-day trip that will involve both personal business and diplomacy.
At the Trump International Golf Links south of Aberdeen, Mr. Trump will commemorate the launch of a brand-new 18-hole course called the MacLeod Course, which bears the name of his mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, a Scottish native. On the opposite side of Scotland, he also intends to play rounds at the Trump Turnberry course, which Mr. Trump purchased in 2014.
Additionally, the president has some business to attend to. He intends to meet with Keir Starmer, the prime minister of Britain, who has been cultivating his relationship with the US president for months.
It might be difficult for Mr. Trump to get along in Scotland.
Generally speaking, the Scots dislike Mr. Trump, and demonstrations are already planned. During the trip, a group called Stop Trump Scotland announced that it is planning a festival of resistance against Mr. Trump and has urged Scotland’s first minister, John Swinney, to turn down his invitation to meet with him.
According to a statement from the protest group, the people of Scotland do not want to welcome Donald Trump, whose administration is hastening the global expansion of fascism and climatic catastrophe.
According to a February survey conducted by the research firm Ipsos, 71 percent of Scottish respondents had a negative opinion of him, compared to 57 percent of the British public as a whole.
According to the authorities, they were ready for the protests.
Nevertheless, throughout the trip, the Scottish leaders hope to further their relationship with the United States.
The United States and Scotland have had a close bond for generations. According to Mr. Swinney’s remark, that alliance is unwavering because to its economic, cultural, and ancestral ties, including, of course, with the president himself.
However, Mr. Swinney, who supported Kamala Harris over Mr. Trump, stated that he also intends to bring up humanitarian concerns with the US president, such as the condition of the Gaza population.
It is my duty as first minister to further our interests, bring up important humanitarian and global concerns, such as the unspeakable suffering we are seeing in Gaza, and make sure Scotland’s voice is heard at the highest echelons of international governance, he said.
It is anticipated that Mr. Trump and Mr. Starmer would talk about trade. After weeks of straining to finalize trade treaties, Mr. Trump and Mr. Starmer announced an agreement in June, just as he was under intense political pressure to do so. Lower taxes on British automobiles, steel, aluminum, and aerospace equipment were part of the agreement, which also reduced restrictions on certain British products.
Charles Kupchan, a Georgetown University professor of international politics and senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, said that any significant announcements made during the trip will probably have to do with trade.
“If there is a deliverable, it must be a trade deliverable, considering where we are in the tariff saga,” he stated. The agreement reached with the United Kingdom was very basic. Therefore, in order to make it seem more genuine, I do believe they need to add some flesh to those bones.
Compared to his first major tour of his second term, where he visited Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates and was treated with the honor and respect he has long sought, Mr. Trump’s welcome in Scotland will most likely be very different.
However, his endorsement of NATO and Ukraine backing could ease tensions.
According to Mr. Kupchan, Trump’s shift on Ukraine and then NATO has largely been responsible for the significant levels of worry that have unsettled Europe in recent weeks.
The visit is already being impacted by Mr. Trump’s domestic issues.
The White House declared it would not permit Wall Street Journal writers to be included in the traveling press pool for the trip to Scotland, citing fury over his handling of the so-called Epstein files.
The Journal revealed last week that Mr. Trump had sent a pornographic birthday note to Mr. Epstein, a convicted sexual offender, in 2003. Mr. Trump has sued The Journal and the reporters on the byline for $10 billion, and he has denied writing or drawing it.
The Epstein narrative has taken over Washington in recent weeks in ways that were impossible to foresee at the beginning of 2025.
In contrast to other topics, it has struck a chord with the people at a time when Mr. Trump is significantly altering America’s immigration and social assistance policies and adding trillions to the national debt. When he returns to Washington, those problems will be there.
Regarding the trip to Scotland, Mr. Kupchan stated, “I kind of see this as a low-risk trip.” He then immediately finds himself in a precarious situation again.
