US President Donald Trump has said he wants to see Scotland “thrive” and raised hopes of a deal to cut tariffs on whisky. Mr Trump – whose mother was born in the Outer Hebrides – spoke of his “love” for Scotland during a visit to his Trump Turnberry golf resort in Ayrshire. The president also branded wind turbines “ugly monsters” as he backed North Sea oil and gas before flying to his other Scottish golf resort in Aberdeenshire. Mr Trump and Sir Keir later arrived at the US president’s golf course in Menie, Aberdeenshire. They arrived on Marine One, the president’s helicopter, at about 7pm and were greeted by a pipe band from Robert Gordon College, who played Scotland The Brave and were saluted by Mr Trump. Mr Trump has repeatedly referred to Aberdeen as “the oil capital of Europe”, and described it while he was at Turnberry as “an amazing place”. At Turnberry, flanked by Sir Keir, Mr Trump was asked if changes could be made to the UK-US trade deal, which would benefit Scotland. “I have great love for Scotland,” he said. Speaking of his mother, the President said she would “religiously” return home every year. He jokingly added: “When we do our trade deal, a lot of it comes to Scotland, maybe all of it should go to Scotland.” He continued: “We deal with the UK, but a lot of it comes to Scotland. “I was very particular, because this is a part of the world I want to see thrive.” Despite the trade deal agreed between the two countries, a 10 per cent tariff remains on Scotch whisky, one of the country’s biggest exports. Asked earlier if that tariff could be dropped or eliminated as a result of the meeting with the Prime Minister, Mr Trump, who is teetotal, said: “We’ll talk about that, I didn’t know whisky was a problem. I’m not a big whisky drinker, but maybe I should be.” In a marathon press conference at his golf course alongside Sir Keir Starmer, Mr Trump said the UK needs a “mix” of different types of energy. Mr Trump has long been outspoken about his opposition to wind and famously strongly opposed an offshore development which is visible from his Aberdeenshire golf course. Asked at the event if he had spoken to Sir Keir or planned to do so with Scottish First Minister John Swinney, Mr Trump said: “Wind is the most expensive form of energy and it destroys the beauty of your fields, your plains and your waterways. “Wind needs massive subsidy, and you are paying in Scotland and in the UK, and all over the place, massive subsidies to have these ugly monsters all over the place.” Instead, the President urged the UK to exploit North Sea oil and gas. “When we go to Aberdeen, you’ll see some of the ugliest windmills you’ve ever seen, the height of a 50-storey building,” he said. “You can take 1,000 times more energy out of a hole in the ground this big,” he added, gesturing with his hands. “It’s called oil and gas, and you have it there in the North Sea.” Last week, First Minister Mr Swinney described offshore wind as “one of Scotland’s greatest modern success stories”. To the laughter of some of the assembled group, the Prime Minister – breaking with the President – calmly said: “We believe in a mix. “Obviously, oil and gas is going to be with us for a very long time, and that’ll be part of the mix, but also wind, solar, increasingly nuclear, which is what we’ve been discussing this morning. “As we go forward, the most important thing for the United Kingdom is that we have control of our energy and we have energy independence and security because, at the moment, whatever the attributes and facilities in the North Sea, that is sold on the international market and we buy it back off the international market. “That was a historic mistake, in my view, but what we need is a mix so that we get the energy security we need for the future.” Mr Trump also labelled Sir Keir a “tax cutter” and said he did a “great thing with the economy. However he attacked Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan as a “nasty person” and hailed both Sir Keir and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as “great men”. The president also indicated that the US may not impose heavy tariffs on British pharmaceuticals, telling reporters that “we certainly feel a lot better” about the UK working on drugs that will be sold in the States compared to other nations. Referring to the Prime Minister and the Reform UK leader, the US president said: “I happen to like both men. I like this man (Sir Keir) a lot, and I like Nigel. “And, you know, I don’t know the politics over here. I don’t know where they stand. I would say one is slightly liberal – not that liberal, slightly – and the other one is slightly conservative, but they’re they’re both good men.” He added: “(Sir Keir) did a great thing with the economy, because a lot of money is going to come in because of the deal that was made. But I think that, I think that immigration is now bigger than ever before.” The president had earlier said that he thinks Sir Keir, who has been in office for more than a year, will be “a tax cutter.” Mark Kent, Chief Executive of the Scotch Whisky Association, and Chris Swonger, Chief Executive of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States said: "The President's commitment this afternoon to look at the tariffs on Scotch Whisky ahead of his meeting with the Prime Minister is very welcome. "The Scotch Whisky and US Whiskey industries are close partners and we stand shoulder to shoulder on the issue of tariffs, calling for a permanent return to zero for zero trade which has driven the success of our industries. “We look forward to the delivery of a deal which secures zero tariff trade for our products on both sides of the Atlantic." Get daily political analysis - subscribe for free to The Steamie David Whitehouse, Chief Executive of Offshore Energies UK, said: “It is good to hear this clear recognition from the Prime Minister that the UK will need a diverse energy mix and that oil and gas remain essential to the UK’s energy future. We’ve long said that this is not a choice between renewables or oil and gas - we need both. “We were pleased to set this out in our open letter to the Prime Minister ahead of today’s meeting with President Trump. The UK must not increase its reliance on imported energy. “If we are going to use oil and gas, let’s produce it here - responsibly, with lower emissions, and with all the benefits to jobs, taxes and growth that come from homegrown supply. “Words matter and today’s words from the Prime Minster were very welcome. “What matters even more is action. We now need to see that recognition translate into decisions that back the UK’s offshore energy sector, support jobs, and secure investment in oil, gas, wind, hydrogen and carbon capture.”