John Swinney prompted an indignant response from Donald Trump opponents today after the US president’s son Eric flew in for talks at Bute House.

Mr Trump jnr is executive vice president in his father’s business which owns golf resorts in Ayrshire and Aberdeenshire.

He arrived at Edinburgh Airport on a Trump private jet and the meeting in Charlotte Square is understood to have lasted just short of an hour. It focused solely on the Trump Organisation’s golf interests.

A spokesperson for the First Minister said: “The meeting with Mr Trump provided an opportunity to discuss Scotland’s investment potential and the first minister was pleased to hear about the company’s continued commitment to Scotland, in particular Aberdeenshire and Ayrshire.”

In a statement issued by his Scottish spokesman, Mr Trump said: “I’m delighted to say that it was a very warm and friendly meeting and this is the first time that a First Minister has invited us to Bute House.

“The First Minister thanked me for the Trump Organisation’s ongoing colossal investment and commitment to Scotland. This is the first time that I’ve heard those words from the First Minister and they were hugely appreciated.

“Our discussions focused solely on the Trump Organisation’s commitment to creating in Trump Turnberry and Trump International in Aberdeenshire two of the most iconic golf destinations in the world. We did not discuss Scottish or US politics but concentrated on golf. It was a very positive and constructive meeting about business and investment.”

Trump Turnberry, the resort in Ayrshire, was vandalised over the weekend by a pro-Palestinian group angered by the president’s comments on Gaza.

Scottish Greens’ co-leader Lorna Slater led criticism of the meeting, saying the First Minister’s decision to meet Eric Trump was “a bad call that sends a terrible message”.

“Eric Trump is not a normal businessman,” she said. “He is a right-wing extremist that has peddled misinformation and conspiracy theories.

“He is a figurehead for an administration that is wrecking our planet while cozying up to Vladimir Putin and showing total contempt for human rights and democracy.”

The meeting came amid an escalation in the trade war with the president threatening to impose a 200% tariff on any alcohol coming to the US from the EU.

Mr Trump was responding to the EU’s plans for a levy on US-produced whiskey in retaliation for US tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports.

He called EU bloc “nasty”, “hostile and abusive”, and “formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of the United States”.

A European Commission spokesperson said that “calls are being prepared” between between the US and the EU to discuss the situation.

Writing on Truth Social, Trump said the tariff – a new border tax on alcohol imports from the EU – would be “great for the Wine and Champagne businesses in the US”.

His action on steel and aluminium came into effect on Wednesday, imposing a blanket duty of 25% on imports and ending exemptions that the US had previously granted for shipments, including from the EU and Canada.

The latest threats continue to unsettle financial markets, though the FTSE 100 closed almost unchanged, up 1.59 points at 8,542.56.