Andrey Yashlavsky
The British King Charles III had to abandon plans to attend the Cop27 summit – and the new monarch made this decision not entirely of his own free will, but “on the advice of Liz Truss.” The Prime Minister of Great Britain objected to the head of state’s trip abroad during a personal audience at Buckingham Palace.
King Charles III reportedly abandoned plans to attend and give a speech at the Cop27 climate change summit on the advice of Liz Truss. A veteran environm-ental campaigner, the Bri-tish monarch has been inv-ited to the 27th UN Climate Change Conference in Sha-rm el-Sheikh, Egypt, next month.
But Prime Minister Truss raised objections during a private audience at Buckingham Palace, accor-ding to the Sunday Times.
And according to The Guardian, Buckingham Pa-lace has confirmed that Ki-ng Charles III will not att-end the summit. A senior r-oyal source told the press: “There is nothing surprisi-ng about the king being in-vited there. He had to think very carefully about what steps to take for his first overseas tour, and he’s not going to attend the Cop.”
Sources state that the king’s decision not to go to Egypt was taken on the advice of the government and was “entirely in the spirit of always remembering, as a king, that he is acting on the advice of the government”.
Another source said the new monarch would be “personally disappointed” to miss the conference, with several events planned related to his Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI), which aims to convince businesses to invest in green initiatives.
“Last year, the Queen gave a completely non-political speech at the Cop summit… it looks like he was not given a choice. This is an error of judgment on the part of the government,” sources told the Sunday Times.
Meanwhile, a source at 10 Downing Street told Sky News: “The idea that the prime minister is giving orders to the king is ridiculous.”
If we were talking about a trip where Charles III would act as a “wedding general”, it would be one thing. But climate change has been a concern for the current King of Great Britain for many years. As Crown Prince, Charles has been an active participant in previous environmental summits. He notably gave the opening speech at Cop21 in Paris in 2015, cal-ling for a “vast military ca-mpaign” to combat climate change and urging world leaders to commit “trillions, not billions of dollars” to this cause.
He also conve-ned world leaders and business representatives to urge them to sign the landmark Paris Climate Agreement before the summit.
Last year, Charles gave a speech at the opening ceremony of Cop26 in Glasgow, calling on world leaders to take a “military stance” to combat the threat of climate change. Ahead of Cop26, he invited U.S. climate special envoy John Kerry to Clarence House in London, in stark contrast to the government, which did not send a minister when Kerry made the big speech.
The then Prince of Wales laid out the Terra Carta, or Earth Charter, about environmental goals. Now, his son Prince William has also taken over his work on rainforest conservation and conservation. During the Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June, the new Prince of Wales gave a speech after pictures of the planet were projected onto Buckingham Palace.
William said at the time, “When I look at these extraordinary images, it makes me think of all the monumental and groundbreaking work that so many visionary environmentalists have done before. I am so proud that my grandfather and father were part of this effort.”
The canceled Sharm el-Sheikh summit for Charles III could have been King Charles III’s first foreign trip as sovereign of the United Kingdom. It is standard protocol for a monarch to seek advice from the government before accepting an invitation abroad, a source told The Guardian.
