2023-09-21 16:36:08
“Moving from a cordial understanding to a understand sustainability” of the planet. This Thursday, the British King, Charles III, vindicated the ties between France and the United Kingdom to face two of the main current challenges: the climate emergency and the war in Ukraine. In the most political moment of his state visit to Paris and Bordeaux, the monarch assured the French Senate that London “will always be one of the closest allies and one of the best friends of France.” He has asked to take a leap forward in this historic relationship to confront global warming, “the biggest challenge of all.”
Macron displays the splendor of Paris and Versailles for King Charles III
“During my time as king, I undertake to do everything in my power to strengthen the indispensable relationship between the United Kingdom and France,” the monarch stated in the chamber of the upper house in the French capital, before hundreds of senators and deputies. Canceled in March due to heated protests against unpopular pension reform, Charles III’s visit is intended to symbolize the thaw in the links between Paris y London. The multiple frictions over Brexit and the immigration situation in the English Channel calmed down with the arrival of Rishi Sunak to Downing Street.
The king demands a climate alliance
As is usual in the British crown, protocol and symbolism prevail in this visit by Charles III. From his intervention at the Bourbon Palace – his mother Elizabeth II had given a speech there in 2004 – however, what stands out is his proposal for “an agreement in favor of sustainability” between both countries to confront change. climate. “We have to renew it (the relationship between France and the United Kingdom) for future generations (…) and I propose that it be an agreement for sustainability and for respond more effectively to the global climate and biodiversity emergency”, declared the monarch. Since he inherited the British crown last year, he has made one of the hallmarks of his reign his commitment to defending the environment.
???? “Applause that would make us dream in our respective chambers”
The reaction of Gérard Larcher and Yaël Braun-Pivet after the standing ovation of parliamentarians to King Charles III pic.twitter.com/13TZGJKkS0
— BFMTV (@BFMTV) September 21, 2023
However, this proposal comes at a time when the conservative Sunak is preparing to stop ecological transition policies in the United Kingdom. The prime minister announced on Wednesday that he will extend the deadline to end combustion vehicles until 2035, five years longer than planned. He also said he will give more time to households to replace their gas boilers with ones that emit less CO2. A electoral turn with the aim of the British Conservatives making a comeback ahead of the next general elections (scheduled for 2024 or early 2025), whose polls are led by the Labor Party’s Keir Starmer by a wide margin. But this decision contradicts the climate ambition expressed by Charles III.
“Together alongside the Ukrainian people”
The monarch has also evoked the military alliance between France and the United Kingdom during the Second World War to express his current “determination” in the Ukrainian war. “Together we are on the side of the Ukrainian people, (…) together we are invincible with our determination that Ukraine and our freedoms will prevail,” he assured. Both London and Paris are aligned with NATO in providing constant arms support to kyiv in the war with Russia.
After his speech in the Senate, Charles III participated in a meeting with a sporting emphasis in Saint-Denis with local associations. Also He greeted Paris Saint-Germain footballers there and its president Nasser Al-Khelaïfi. In addition, a visit to the Notre Dame Cathedral and an event at the Natural History Museum are scheduled this Thursday. And a meeting with French and British businessmen involved in the energy and climate transition: “I have thought for a long time that our companies can play an essential role,” he defended.
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