President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. (file photo from Agence France-Presse) and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (file photo from Reuters)
MANILA, Philippines — United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is eager to meet President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla, UK Ambassador to the Philippines Laure Beaufils told the Inquirer on Tuesday.
Beaufils said they were working on setting up a meeting between the two leaders on Saturday, the day of the coronation, adding that arrangements were ongoing but nothing had been finalized.
“We hope so. The prime minister said that he would very much like to meet President Marcos so we’re in the process of trying to make that happen. We very much hope that the meeting will take place on Saturday and we think it’s likely to take place on Saturday,” she added.
The president, along with first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, will be one of more than 120 heads of state who will attend King Charles’ coronation at Westminster Abbey.
This will be the first coronation in 72 years after that of his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, in 1953.
To mark the historic event, the UK Embassy in Manila will hold a live free screening of the coronation at the Liwasang Aurora in Quezon Memorial Circle starting at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
“The Coronation of our new King and the Queen consort will be a very solemn occasion for many of us — but it will also be a moment of celebration and pageantry. It was important for those of us in the British Embassy Manila to be able to share this moment with the Filipino community.
We can’t wait to host our Filipino friends for what will be a very special occasion, and a uniquely British combination of ceremony, celebration, and tradition,” Beaufils said.