Queen Elizabeth II will host US President Joe Biden in person on June 13 after he attends a G7 summit in south-west England that weekend, Buckingham Palace announced Thursday.
The 95-year-old monarch will meet with the president and the first lady, Jill Biden, at Windsor Castle, about 50 km west of London, where she has been retired since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
Elizabeth II, who received her second dose of the covid-19 vaccine at the end of March, has since held most of her meetings virtually, including hearings with foreign ambassadors.
This will be her most prominent official engagement since presiding over the opening of the parliamentary session in London on May 11, which was her first public appearance since the funeral of her husband, Prince Philip.
The Duke of Edinburgh passed away on April 9, a month short of his 100th birthday.
The queen’s meeting with Biden will take place one day after the official celebration of the monarch’s birthday, very limited this year due to the pandemic, and after the three-day summit that the G7 heads of state and government will hold in Cornwall.
This will mark the start of Biden’s first international tour since he arrived at the White House in January.
During her 69-year reign, the British queen has met with every American president except Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1969).
Donald Trump made a controversial state visit to the United Kingdom in June 2019 and was received by Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace.
With information from AFP
