King Charles III held an audience with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at Buckingham Palace on Monday, with photographs showing the monarch greeting the Canadian leader during his visit to London.
The meeting was later recorded in the court circular, which said: “The Rt. Hon. Mark Carney (Prime Minister of Canada) was received in audience by His Majesty.”
The Palace audience came after Mr Carney’s talks with Sir Keir Starmer at Downing Street earlier in the day.
In a readout of the meeting, No 10 said the two leaders began by discussing the strength of the UK-Canada relationship, describing ties between the countries as closer than ever and pointing to cooperation on trade and defence.
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Downing Street said they also discussed the Middle East and agreed on the importance of restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, while reaffirming support for Ukraine and the need to maintain pressure on Russia.
The Canadian Prime Minister’s Office gave a fuller account of the bilateral meeting, saying Mr Carney and Sir Keir condemned Iranian missile and drone attacks, including strikes on civilian and energy infrastructure, and expressed concern about the risk of further escalation and the wider economic consequences of the conflict, including rising energy prices.
Ottawa also said the pair discussed ways to deepen economic and security cooperation and highlighted possible new approaches to defence production and supply chains, including through the proposed Defence, Security and Resilience Bank.
Mr Carney’s trip to Britain had been announced by Ottawa on Sunday following his visit to Nordic countries, with the Canadian Government saying he would travel to the UK to meet Sir Keir and have an audience with the King.
King Charles pictured with Canadian PM after he backed Andrew being removed from succession
|PA
The Canadian statement said the visit was intended to deepen defence, trade and economic partnerships between the two countries.
Monday’s audience, therefore, formed part of an already scheduled diplomatic visit centred on security, international stability and Canada’s relationship with one of its closest allies.
The Buckingham Palace meeting also came little more than a week after Mr Carney publicly backed removing Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the royal line of succession.
Speaking to reporters in Tokyo, the Canadian premier said Andrew’s actions were “deplorable” and said they “necessitate” his removal from the line of succession, adding that it was a point of principle even though he is well down the order.
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King Charles and Mark Carney greeting each other in Buckingham Palace
|PA
Mr Carney’s intervention made Canada the latest Commonwealth realm to signal support for such a move.
Mr Mountbatten-Windsor, who remains eighth in line to the throne, was arrested last month on suspicion of misconduct in public office over allegations he sent confidential Government documents to Jeffrey Epstein while serving as a trade envoy.
He was later released under investigation.
Mark Carney is the Prime Minister of Canada
|GETTY
Mr Mountbatten-Windsor has always denied wrongdoing in relation to Epstein and has said he regrets their friendship.
The UK Government has since said it would consider legislation to remove him from the line of succession once the police investigation is complete, with any change requiring agreement from the other realms where the King is head of state.
Australia has already said it would back such a proposal, and New Zealand has also signalled support.