Without going through France as initially planned, King Charles III is going to Germany on Wednesday for his first major visit abroad since his accession to the throne. After more than six months in power, Charles III's first foreign tour was turned upside down by protests in France against pension reform. He was to go to Paris on Monday, before continuing with Germany, but finally gave up given the social context.
Buckingham Palace, confirming the postponement of the visit on Friday, said it would take place "as soon as dates can be found". For his part, French President Emmanuel Macron has raised the possibility that Charles III will travel to France "at the beginning of the summer".
The monarch and Queen Consort Camilla are due to arrive in Berlin on Wednesday and spend three days in the country, until March 31. The couple will be welcomed with military honors at the Brandenburg Gate. It is the first time that a ceremony of this kind has taken place for a state guest at the foot of this emblematic monument of Berlin.
He will then go to the presidential palace where a banquet will be held as part of the visit, a solemn occasion to celebrate the relationship of friendship between two countries. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who will accompany the monarch throughout his trip, called the king's visit "an important European gesture". "This early visit underscores the close and warm friendship between our countries and our peoples," he said.
On Thursday, Charles III is to deliver a speech in the German Parliament and meet with Ukrainian refugees. Frank-Walter Steinmeier and the royal couple will then visit a German-British military unit in the Brandenburg region, west of Berlin.
The king will travel to the northern port city of Hamburg on Friday, where he is expected to visit a renewable energy project. "It's no surprise that since becoming king he hasn't let go of his longstanding interest in environmental issues," Bob Ward of the Grantham Institute told AFP. research on climate change and the environment.
"It is a subject that transcends politics, and it does not seem possible that as head of state, he does not express himself on such a major subject," he adds. In Hamburg, the king will also lay wreaths at the Saint-Nicolas church, destroyed during the Second World War and since transformed into a memorial.
He will also sign the city's "Golden Book", which he signed in 1987 during a visit with his first wife, Princess Diana, when he was still Prince of Wales.
Frank-Walter Steinmeier was delighted that his invitation, made at Elizabeth II's funeral in September, was honored so quickly by Charles III, who already knows Germany well, having visited more than 40 times .
"The fact that he comes today, six months after (his accession to the throne), shows how much the king appreciates the friendship between our peoples," insisted the German president. “I want to tell him, but of course also tell all Britons: we in Germany, we in Europe want close and friendly ties with the UK, even after Brexit. »
Elizabeth II's last visit to Germany in 2015, under Angela Merkel, sparked great enthusiasm in the country. With her husband Prince Philip, she had visited the former Nazi concentration camp of Bergen-Belsen, in the north of the country.
The monarch's most significant visit to Germany dates back to 1965, seen as the moment that sealed the reconciliation between the two countries after World War II.
