Message to King Charles III followed condolences over death of his mother

Queen Elizabeth II visited the Terracotta Warriors Museum in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, on Oct 16, 1986. The British monarch died on Sept 8 at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. (PHOTO / AP)

President Xi Jinping congratulated King Charles III on his accession to the British throne on Sept 11, two days after he sent the new monarch a message of condolence on the passing of his mother.

Queen Elizabeth II died on Sept 8 at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.

On behalf of the Chinese government and the Chinese people and in his own name, Xi mourned the loss of Queen Elizabeth II and expressed sincere condolences to the British Royal Family, government and people.

Xi said that Queen Elizabeth II had won wide acclaim as Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and was the first in that position to visit China. 

This was followed by the president’s Sept 11 message to the new king in which he said that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties at the ambassadorial level between China and the United Kingdom.

Xi said he is ready to work with King Charles III to make joint efforts to enhance understanding and friendship between the two peoples and expand friendly exchanges and mutually beneficial cooperation.

He also expressed his willingness to work with the new British king to strengthen communication on global issues and contribute to world peace and development.

King Charles III was officially proclaimed monarch at an accession ceremony on Sept 10, as the grieving royal family revealed detailed plans for the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, which will be held at Westminster Abbey in London on Sept 19.

In his declaration during the accession ceremony, the 73-year-old King Charles III told the Accession Council of hundreds of senior political and religious advisers that he would strive to follow his mother’s “inspiring example”.

“I am deeply aware of this great inheritance and of the duties and heavy responsibilities of Sovereignty which have now passed to me,” he said in the ceremony.

The Accession Proclamation was then read out from the balcony of St James’s Palace to a trumpet fanfare, followed by gun salutes.

Queen Elizabeth II was born in the era of silent movies, and lived to see the era of virtual reality and artificial intelligence.

She arrived in a world in which her grandfather King George V was the emperor of India, and left it with Britain still finding its feet on the world stage following its exit from the European Union.

As the first British monarch to visit China, Queen Elizabeth II witnessed and supported the advancement of friendly Sino-UK ties since that trip in 1986.

In her most recent interaction with President Xi in 2015, she described Xi’s visit to the UK as “a milestone in ... cooperation and friendship” and the two countries’ relationship as “truly a global partnership”.

“We have much reason to celebrate the dynamic, growing economic relationship between our countries as well as our success in working together to address pressing international challenges,” she said. 

“This global partnership is supported by an expanding network of links between the people of our two countries … while we welcome the increasing numbers of Chinese tourists, students and business visitors to the United Kingdom,” said the queen.

Two years prior to her China visit, the governments of China and the UK reached an agreement on Hong Kong’s return to the motherland under the principle of “one country, two systems”.

During her 1986 visit, the queen praised the conscientious efforts of both sides during the previous two years to ensure smooth implementation of the joint declaration pertaining to Hong Kong’s handover.

In 1999, two years after Hong Kong’s return to the motherland, then Chinese president Jiang Zemin visited the queen at Buckingham Palace. 

Kong Yuan, a researcher at the Institute of European Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said, “Her death will be an emotional blow for many British people, especially when the country stands on the brink of a deep economic crisis and with many foreign policy challenges to manage.”

Just two days before she passed away, the Queen formally appointed Liz Truss as Britain’s prime minister. 

Kong said that although Truss has made some confrontational remarks about China, there is no reason for her to make Sino-UK relations confrontational.

Given that China is Britain’s third-largest trading partner, “pragmatic cooperation will continue to be in the interests of both sides”, he said. 

On Sept 12, Chinese Vice-President Wang Qishan visited the British embassy in Beijing to offer his condolences on the Queen’s death, and spoke highly of her contribution to relations between the two countries.

Wang stood in silent tribute in front of the queen’s picture and signed the condolence book. 

Agencies contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at xingyi@chinadaily.com.cn