King Charles touched down in Ottawa on Monday for a historic visit emphasizing his commitment to Canada, a country that has him as its monarch but which US President Donald Trump has provocatively proposed might be made the 51st US state.
Queen Camilla joined Charles as he was greeted on the airport tarmac by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Governor General Mary Simon, the King’s representative in Canada. The trip’s centerpiece will be Charles opening the Canadian Parliament on Tuesday a duty last done by his mother, late Queen Elizabeth II, 68 years ago. Although currently receiving cancer treatment that restricted his public appearances, the 76-year-old monarch’s two-day visit to Canada evidences his keen attachment to Canada, one of the 15 Commonwealth realms over which he serves as head of state.
Trump has consistently made it clear that he would like to annex Canada, a proposition firmly dismissed by Carney, whose recent general election win was in part due to his unequivocal rejection of the proposal. Canada’s representative in the UK, Ralph Goodale, asserted that the message from the Prime Minister on Canada’s sovereignty remains unshakeable, and King Charles’s visit will serve to reinforce this position.
Over the past few months, Charles has expressed subtle backing of Canada, donning Canadian honors, calling himself King of Canada, and glorifying the national flag as a source of pride. The visit, though, coincides with a sensitive diplomatic equilibrium, with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer eager to keep on good terms with America, specifically on Ukraine and commerce.
Starmer’s call to invite Trump on a rare second state visit to the UK is said to have angered Canadians, highlighting complexities Charles must navigate in fulfilling his role in light of shifting global relations.