Donald Trump has taken a swipe at immigration levels in Europe saying that the continent was facing a “horrible invasion.”
The U.S. president made the comments upon arriving in Glasgow ahead of a four-day visit to the U.K. as he touted his administration’s crackdown on immigration in the U.S.
“You better get your act together or you’re not going to have Europe anymore,” Trump told reporters on Friday.
Newsweek has contacted the European Union for comment.
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Why It Matters
The U.S. president has made border control a priority but weighing in on the immigration issues of other countries could be tricky diplomatically for U.K. prime minister Sir Keir Starmer, who faces a mounting political crisis over illegal small boat crossings in the Channel.
Trump’s comments were light on detail but they follow demonstrations which turned violent outside a hotel used by asylum-seekers, in Essex, England, after a migrant was charged with sexually assaulting a schoolgirl.
What To Know
Trump arrived at Glasgow’s Prestwick Airport on Friday where he spoke to reporters after landing. Referring to Europe, he said that on immigration “you better get your act together” without mentioning any country in particular.
Trump said that last month the U.S. had “nobody entering our country” and that his administration “took out of a lot of bad people” who had arrived under his predecessor Joe Biden.
But the U.S. president said that “many countries in Europe” are facing a “horrible invasion” although in his view there were some unnamed exceptions to this who were “not getting the proper credit they should.”
“Stop. This immigration is killing Europe,” he added. He also said that Europe should cut the number of wind turbines because they were blighting the countryside.
The president headed to his Trump Turnberry resort, which he bought in 2014 and was pictured on Saturday morning on the golf course there driving a buggy.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump on Friday: “On immigration, you better get your act together or you’re not going to have Europe anymore.
He added: “You got to stop this horrible invasion that’s happening to Europe. Many countries in Europe.”
What Happens Next
Trump is visiting his Turnberry hotel and golf course in Ayrshire before traveling on to his new 18-hole course the Menie Estate near Aberdeen.
Amid a heightened police presence, protests have been planned for Edinburgh and Aberdeen on Saturday and the Stop Trump coalition is planning what it has described as being a “festival of resistance.”
During his five-day trip, the president will also meet Sir Keir and Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission.