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King Charles to welcome South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in first state visit of his reign | UK News


The King will hold his first state visit as monarch as he welcomes the South African president to the UK.

The Prince and Princess of Wales will play an important role in visitincluding a state banquet at Buckingham Palace.

William and Kate will say hello President Cyril Ramaphosa and his wife, Tshepo Motsepe, on behalf of the King. They will then join the couple for a welcome ceremony at the Horse Guards Parade.

Two hundred horses and a thousand soldiers will take part in the military parade, with salutes from Green Park.

A state chariot will take the president, King and Queen Consort with the Prince and Princess of Wales to Buckingham Palace for a private lunch.

The King will then show the President an exhibition of items from the Royal Collection related to South Africa.

The evening state banquet will see the royal red carpet rolled out, with both the Queen and Princess of Wales expected to wear tiaras.

State visits are the ultimate diplomatic gift, and the State Department decides who is invited.

They offer the UK government an opportunity to foster and promote international relations.

Even so, this has special significance for the King as it is the first time in his reign.

He will give a speech at the start of the party, and his words will be carefully chosen and the King can take this opportunity to discuss his vision for the Commonwealth. .

Members of the Royal Air Force (RAF) greet South African President Cyril Ramaphosa as he arrives at Stansted Airport
Picture:
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will attend a state reception at Buckingham Palace as part of his visit

It is also the first state visit to the UK since the pandemic, with the previous visit in 2019 when the Queen hosted US President Donald Trump.

During her reign, the Queen has hosted 116 State visits and is known to pay close attention to small details.

Her most recent visit to South Africa was more than a decade ago in 2010, when she welcomed President Jacob Zuma.

President Ramaphosa is currently facing domestic controversy, accused of covering up the theft of $4m (£3.4m) in cash from his farm. The president denies any wrongdoing.

Don’t expect any mention of that. This visit will be used to announce new projects between South Africa and the UK.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “South Africa is already the UK’s largest trading partner on the continent and we have ambitious plans to drive infrastructure investment and economic growth together. together.

“I look forward to welcoming President Ramaphosa to London this week to discuss how we can deepen the partnership between our two great nations and capitalize on shared opportunities, from commerce and tourism as well as security and defence.”

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