Donald Trump says he would "love" to visit the UK and doesn't care about the prospect of protests by opponents.
His comment came as Downing Street announced that Mr Trump would be making his first trip to the UK as US President on a working visit later this year.
No date has been set for the full state visit, including a welcome from the Queen, to which Theresa May invited Mr Trump last year, though officials have made clear that the invitation remains open.
Critics of the US President, including London Mayor Sadiq Khan and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, have previously said that Mr Trump should not come to the UK, and large protests are expected if the trip goes ahead.
Reports on Friday (NZ time) suggested the President was reluctant to visit the UK unless he could be promised a "warm welcome".
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Asked in his interview with ITV1's Good Morning Britain what he would say to his critics, Mr Trump replied: "I don't care. I don't care. It's just one of those things, I don't say anything. You know why? I don't care."
Interviewer Piers Morgan pointed out that world leaders who have been to the UK for state visits have included Russia's Vladimir Putin, China's Xi Jinping and Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe.
When Mr Morgan told the President that some figures in Britain would like him banned from the country, Mr Trump said: "I hadn't heard about banning, I think a lot of the people in your country like what I stand for, they respect what I stand for and I do stand for tough borders."
He added: "The real me is somebody that loves Britain, loves the UK. I love Scotland.
"One of the biggest problems I have in winning [the presidency], I won't be able to get back there so often. I would love to go there."
Mr Trump's appearance in the UK is not expected until the second half of 2018.
Reuters
