UK
UK PM Sunak makes surprise trip to Kyiv, boosts defence aid
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak promised 125 anti-aircraft guns and other air-defence technology as he made an unannounced visit Saturday — his first — to Ukraine's snow-blanketed capital for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The air-defense package, which Britain valued at 50 million pounds ($60 million), comes as Russia has been pounding Ukraine's power grid and other key infrastructure from the air, causing widespread blackouts for millions of Ukrainians amid frigid weather.
The package includes radar and other technology to counter the Iran-supplied exploding drones that Russia has used against Ukrainian targets. It comes on top of a delivery of more than 1,000 anti-air missiles that Britain announced earlier this month.
Read more: G20: As Lavrov watches on, UK PM Sunak criticises Russia’s “barbaric” war
The U.K. has been one of the staunchest Western backers of Ukraine’s resistance to Russia’s invasion. Speaking alongside Zelenskyy, Sunak noted that the U.K. has given 2.3 billion pounds ($2.7 billion) in military aid and pledged: “We will do the same again next year.”
“Your homes, your hospitals, your power stations are being destroyed," Sunak said in announcing the new air-defence package. “You and your people are paying a heavy price in blood.”
Speaking through a translator, Zelenskyy said Russian strikes have damaged around half of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
As snowflakes fell, Zelenskyy greeted Sunak at a presidential palace for their talks. He called the two countries “the strongest of allies.” Walking in the snow, they also inspected captured Russian tanks and other destroyed and rusting military hardware used by the invasion forces that are displayed in a Kyiv square.
“With friends like you by our side, we are confident in our victory. Both of our nations know what it means to stand up for freedom,” the Ukrainian leader said on Twitter.
Former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who stepped down in July, won wide praise in Ukraine for his backing. Sunak is keen to reassure Ukraine’s leaders that there will be no change of stance under his leadership, although when he was U.K. Treasury chief under Johnson he was considered resistant to demands for higher defense spending.
“The courage of the Ukrainian people is an inspiration to the world,” Sunak said. “In years to come, we will tell our grandchildren of your story.”
He pledged that Britain "will stand with you until Ukraine has won the peace and security it needs and deserves and then we will stand with you as you rebuild your great country.”
Sunak also laid flowers at a memorial for the war dead, lit a candle at a memorial for victims of a deadly Soviet-era famine in Ukraine in the 1930s, and met first responders at a fire station, his office said.
Sunak's visit came in the wake of a major recent battlefield success for Ukraine: the recapture of the southern city of Kherson.
Read more: UK’s foreign aid may be suspended for 2 more years under PM Sunak: Reports
The restoration of rail connections brought further joy Saturday to Kherson's residents, who excitedly waited for the first train from Kyiv.
“This is the beginning of a new life,” said 74-year-old Ludmila Olhouskaya, who didn’t have anyone to meet off the train but went to the station to show support. “Or rather, the revival of a former one.”
On the battlefield, Russian forces launched 10 airstrikes, 10 missile strikes and 42 rocket attacks on Ukraine in the last day, the General Staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said Saturday.
In Kherson, the major southern city that Ukrainian forces recaptured more than a week ago, two Russian missiles struck an oil depot — the first time a depot was hit in the city since the Russians withdrew, according to firefighters at the scene. AP reporters said a huge fire and billowing black smoke.
“There was a strong explosion,” said Valentyna Svyderska, who lives nearby. “We were scared, everyone was scared ... Because this is an army that is at war with the civilian population.”
Local authorities were struggling to respond to the blaze, the firefighters said, because Russian forces took the city's fire trucks and ambulances when they retreated.
Russia is pressing an offensive in the eastern Donetsk region, and Ukraine reported heavy fighting around the city of Bakhmut, the town of Avdiivka and the village of Novopavlivka.
Russian forces claimed to have repelled a Ukrainian counteroffensive to take back the settlements of Pershotravneve, Kyslivka and Krokhmalne in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv province.
Ukrainian forces said they killed or wounded scores of Russian soldiers during an attack on the village of Mykhailivka in the southern Kherson region, and the wounded were taken to hospitals in Crimea. The claim could not be independently verified.
Ukrainian forces also reported they conducted deadly strikes on the Kinburn Spit in Ukraine’s southern Mykolaiv province, a key site for Russian electronic warfare.
Russia kept up its strikes on critical infrastructure, with a rocket attack overnight causing a fire at a key industrial facility in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region, according to the region's chief. Some parts of the regional capital of Zaporizhzhia were left without heat.
Read more: Deadly missile strike adds to Ukraine war fears in Poland
The head of Ukraine’s biggest private energy firm told the BBC that Ukrainians who can afford it should consider leaving the country to relieve pressure on its war-damaged power system.
“If they can find an alternative place to stay for another three or four months, it will be very helpful to the system,” said Maxim Timchenko, chief executive of DTEK. “If you consume less, then hospitals with injured soldiers will have a guaranteed power supply."
In Poland, a funeral was held Saturday for one of the two men who died when a missile landed there this week, according to the state news agency PAP. A military honor guard and Polish and Ukrainian representatives joined the man’s family and members of the community.
NATO member Poland and the head of the military alliance have both said the missile strike in an eastern farming region appeared to be unintentional and was probably launched by air defenses in neighboring Ukraine. Russia had been bombarding Ukraine at the time.
The U.K. Ministry of Defense noted Saturday that Russia conducted its largest ever-debt issuance in a single day, raising $13.6 billion on Wednesday. It said debt issuance is a key mechanism to sustain defense spending.
UK’s foreign aid may be suspended for 2 more years under PM Sunak: Reports
According to The Telegraph, the new British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is considering keeping the nation’s foreign aid budget frozen for two more years.
British foreign aid spending is limited to 0.5 percent of national income. Since the country’s public finances had taken a significant hit as a result of the coronavirus pandemic two years prior, the British government reduced its spending on international aid.
By 2024–2025, according to Sunak, who was the finance minister at the time, foreign spending should revert to its previous level of 0.7 percent of GDP.
Read More: Rishi Sunak as UK PM: What are the expectations?
The Telegraph, however, reported that officials are considering extending the cut in foreign aid funding by a further two years, until 2026–2027.
The report also noted that there was room for even larger cuts and the possibility of indexing future foreign aid spending for three years to inflation.
The report is released at a time when the UK is planning expenditure reductions and eliminating tax breaks due to the increasing cost of housing, food, fuel, and heating.
Read More: Rishi Sunak becomes UK's 3rd PM this year by King Charles III
Sunak won’t go to UN climate conference: UK
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will not attend a major United Nations climate conference next month, the government said Thursday.
Sunak’s office said the decision was made because of “pressing domestic commitments” including preparations for an emergency budget on Nov. 17 and does not reflect a downgrade in the Conservative government’s commitment to combating climate change. Other senior U.K. government ministers are expected to attend.
Sunak took office on Tuesday, replacing Liz Truss, who stepped down after a seven-week term in which her tax-cutting plans sparked economic and political mayhem.
Officials from almost 200 countries are due to gather in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, starting Nov. 6 to discuss how to tackle global warming at the conference known as COP27. Britain hosted last year’s COP26 conference in Glasgow, Scotland, which was attended by then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Read: Rishi Sunak becomes UK's 3rd PM this year by King Charles III
A Sunak spokeswoman said Britain remained committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050, “and to leading international and domestic action to tackle climate change.”
Opposition Labour Party spokesman Ed Miliband said Sunak had made “a terrible decision.”
“These summits matter,” he told the BBC. “They are forcing mechanisms for action on the biggest issue we face as a world.”
Next UK PM: Rishi Sunak a strong favorite
Former Treasury chief Rishi Sunak is strong favorite to become Britain’s next prime minister within days — or even hours — after former leader Boris Johnson dropped out of the Conservative Party leadership contest.
After the resignation of Liz Truss last week, the governing party is choosing Britain’s third prime minister this year at a time of political turmoil and severe economic challenges.
Sunak, 42, is the only candidate with confirmed support from more than 100 lawmakers, the number needed to run in the election. House of Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt has far fewer expressions of support, but is aiming to reach the threshold by the time nominations close at 2 p.m.
If Mordaunt does not reach 100 nominations, Sunak will win by acclamation and could move into 10 Downing St. by Monday evening.
If both make the ballot, the 357 Conservative lawmakers will hold an indicative vote on Monday to show their preference. If neither subsequently drops out, the choice will go to the 172,000 party members around the country, with a result announced Friday.
Mordaunt will come under intense pressure to step aside and not force a membership vote if Sunak is the strong favorite among lawmakers.
Home Secretary Grant Shapps, a Sunak supporter, said the former Treasury chief did not think he had the contest “in the bag.”
“He’s speaking to colleagues this morning, he’s working very hard to attract those supporters who were perhaps with Boris Johnson previously,” Shapps said. “But, look, I’ll leave it to Penny, she’s a terrific colleague. Let’s see what happens.”
Sunak, who was runner-up to Truss in this summer’s Tory leadership race to replace Johnson, has promised “integrity, professionalism and accountability” if he forms a government — a contrast to the chaos that consumed the past two prime ministers.
Johnson dramatically quit the race on Sunday night, ending a short-lived, high-profile attempt to return to the prime minister’s job he was ousted from little more than three months ago amid ethics scandals.
Read: Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss to be named as UK's new prime minister
Johnson spent the weekend trying to gain support from fellow Conservative lawmakers after flying back from a Caribbean vacation. Late Sunday he said he had amassed the backing of 102 colleagues. But he was far behind Sunak in support, and said he had concluded that “you can’t govern effectively unless you have a united party in Parliament.
The prospect of a return by Johnson had thrown the already divided Conservative Party into further turmoil. He led the party to a thumping election victory in 2019, but his premiership was clouded by scandals over money and ethics that eventually became too much for the party to bear.
In his Sunday statement, Johnson insisted he was “well placed to deliver a Conservative victory” in the next national election, due by 2024. And he said that he likely would have won a ballot of Conservative Party members against either of his rivals.
“But in the course of the last days I have sadly come to the conclusion that this would simply not be the right thing to do,” he said.
He hinted he might be back, however, saying: “I believe I have much to offer but I am afraid that this is simply not the right time.”
Truss quit Thursday after a turbulent 45 days in office, conceding that she could not deliver on her botched tax-cutting economic package, which she was forced to abandon after it sparked fury within her party and weeks of turmoil in financial markets.
Sunak, who was Treasury chief from 2020 until this summer, steered Britain’s slumping economy through the coronavirus pandemic. He quit in July in protest at Johnson’s leadership.
The Conservative Party turmoil is fueling demands for a national election. Under Britain’s parliamentary system, there does not need to be one until the end of 2024, though the government has the power to call one sooner.
Currently that looks unlikely. Opinion polls say an election would spell disaster for the Conservatives, with the left-of-center Labour Party winning a large majority.
Ledger stone installed at queen's final resting place
Buckingham Palace released a photo Saturday giving the first public glimpse of the new ledger stone installed at the final resting place of Queen Elizabeth II.
The image shows the hand-carved Belgian black marble slab with brass letter inlays set into the floor of King George VI Memorial Chapel, St. George’s Chapel, at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England.
Surrounded by floral wreaths and bouquets, it is inscribed with her name and the years of her birth and death, alongside those of her father, George VI; her mother, Elizabeth; and her husband, Philip, who died last year. It replaces a previous slab that had only her parents.
All four royals were members of the Order of the Garter, which has St. George’s Chapel as its spiritual home.
The release came ahead of the queen’s burial site opening to visitors next week as Windsor Castle reopens to the public.
Elizabeth was laid to rest together with the Duke of Edinburgh on Monday evening in a private service attended by King Charles III and other members of the royal family, following her state funeral at Westminster Abbey and committal service in Windsor.
PM off to New York ending UK visit
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday left London for New York after attending the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
The premier will attend the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and some important events on the sidelines in New York.
A VVIP chartered flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines carrying the PM and her entourage took off from London Stansted International Airport for New York at 8pm local time.
The flight is scheduled to arrive at New York JFK International Airport at about 10:30pm New York time on the same day.
Bangladesh Ambassador-designate in Washington Muhammad Imran and Bangladesh Permanent Representative to the UN Muhammad Abdul Muhith will receive her at the JFK International Airport.
On September 20, the PM is scheduled to attend a reception hosted by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and join the inaugural ceremony of 77th session of UNGA.
She will have bilateral meetings with Filippo Grandi of UNHCR and Slovenian President Borut Pahor. She will also join the UNGA Platform of Women Leaders.
At the end of the day, she will attend the reception of US President Joe Biden.
Besides, she will join a high-level side event on sustainable housing co-hosted by Bangladesh, Botswana, Slovak Republic and UN Habitat on September 21.
On the same day, she will have a bilateral meeting with WEF Executive Director Professor Schwab Klaus, and join the Global Crisis Response Group (GCRG) Champions' Meeting.
In the afternoon, the prime minister will visit the photo exhibition on Padma Bridge at UNHQs followed by bilateral meeting with Kosovo President Dr Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, Ecuador President Guillermo Lasso Mendoza, and Rabab Fatima, USG OHRLSS.
The PM will start the day on September 22 through a breakfast meeting on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) followed by a courtesy call on by IOM Director General Antonio Vitorino. She will also join a high level policy roundtable with the US Bangladesh business council.
Later, she will have bilateral meetings with Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen and ICC Prosecutor Nick Klegg and Karim Khan.
On September 23, the Prime Minister will deliver her address at the General Debate of the 77thSession of the UN General Assembly.
She will join a civic reception to be given by the expatriate Bangladeshis on September 24.
Earlier, Hasina arrived in London on September 15 on an official visit to the United Kingdom mainly to attend the Queen’s funeral and the new king’s ascension reception.
The PM is scheduled to return home in the early hours of October 4 after a short stopover in London on her way from Washington.
Also read: PM reiterates commitment to work for child rights
Bangladesh exports its “largest ever” container ship to UK
Bangladesh today (September 13, 2022) exported a locally built 6100-ton load capacity high-speed multipurpose container ship to the UK.
This is the largest container ship built in the country that has been exported, according to the ship’s builder.
Ananda Shipyard, a Bangladeshi shipbuilding company, has built the ship as per the requirements of UK-based Enzian Shipping Company Ltd.
Read:Foreign investors urged to expand businesses in Bangladesh
The vessel was officially handed over today through a ceremony held at InterContinental Dhaka. State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury was present as the chief guest at the function.
The National Board of Revenue’s Member (Customs Policy) Hossain Ahmed; Director General of Shipping Directorate, Commodore Nizamul Haque; Islami Bank Managing Director and CEO Monirul Mawla; Chairman of Ananda Shipyard, Dr Abdullahel Bari, and Managing Director Afroza Bari also spoke in the function.
Could loss of unifying queen unravel the bonds of fractious UK?
Queen Elizabeth II has been likened to the invisible glue holding the United Kingdom together. Some think the reign of King Charles III will see those bonds come unstuck, giving new momentum to Scotland’s push for independence.
But the fact the queen died last week at her beloved Highland retreat, Balmoral Castle, has made Scotland the focus of commemorations watched around the globe in the first days after her death. That has served as a reminder of the monarchy’s deep ties to Scotland — and could provide a boost for the union.
Scottish historian Tom Devine said because by “extraordinary serendipity” the queen died in Scotland, “it was possible for the world to see the relationship between the queen and this country.”
Also read: Public can pay respects to Queen Elizabeth at Edinburgh cathedral
“It was a fitting end to a life of service and a life of concern for the four nations — not simply one nation — of the U.K.,” he said.
In a touching display of respect, thousands of people on Sunday lined the 175-mile (280 kilometer) route from Balmoral to Edinburgh as the queen’s coffin was driven in a slow procession to the Scottish capital. On Monday, the coffin was carried along Edinburgh’s medieval Royal Mile to St. Giles’ Cathedral, where thousands more are expected to pay their respects over the next day.
The queen had deep ties to Scotland. Besides spending her summer months at Balmoral, her mother, the late Queen Mother, was Scottish and as a child the queen grew up playing on her grandparents' estate of Glamis Castle in central Scotland.
So far there have been only tiny protests by anti-monarchist demonstrators. One woman was arrested in Edinburgh on Sunday for breaching the peace after brandishing a profane sign calling for the abolition of the monarchy.
King Charles III has moved quickly to stress that he will be a monarch for the whole of the U.K., undertaking a national tour during his first days on the throne. He was in Scotland on Monday accompanying his mother’s coffin, and he plans to visit Northern Ireland and Wales later in the week, attending memorial services in Belfast and Cardiff.
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all part of the U.K. but have distinct histories — and complex ties with England, which dominates the U.K. in both population and politics.
Some Welsh nationalists have objected to Prince William being recently given the title of Prince of Wales — a title first given to the heir to the throne after the English conquest of Wales in the 14th century.
Also read: Rules issued for paying respects to the queen
The status of the monarchy has always been fraught in Northern Ireland, where there are two main communities: unionists who consider themselves British and nationalists who see themselves as Irish. That split fueled decades of violence known as “The Troubles,” and remains a deep divide. But in a sign of how far Northern Ireland has come on the road to peace, representatives of the Irish Republican Army-linked party Sinn Fein are attending commemorative events for the queen in Belfast.
Sinn Fein vice president Michelle O’Neill praised “the significant contribution Queen Elizabeth made to the advancement of peace and reconciliation between the different traditions on our island, and between Ireland and Britain during the years of the peace process.”
Scotland and England have been governed under the same monarch since 1603, and formally unified in 1707. But Scotland has distinct educational and legal systems and, since 1999, its own parliament.
Relations now between the Conservative U.K. government in London and the pro-independence Scottish administration in Edinburgh are tense.
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who left office last week, was unpopular in Scotland, where a majority opposed his pet project: Brexit. Johnson led the U.K. out of the European Union after a 2016 referendum in which the country as a whole backed leaving — but Scotland voted to stay in the bloc.
Devine said Johnson’s government had displayed “a reduction in respect for Scotland as an historic nation.”
“That attitude of disrespect considerably annoyed the Scottish electorate over the last few years,” he said. “But there is a still a very strong sense here that the monarchy — especially in the person of the queen — maintains that respect.”
In 2014, Scotland held a referendum on whether to remain part of the U.K. Voters rejected independence by 55% to 45% in what was billed as a once-in-a-generation choice. But the Scottish National Party government in Edinburgh is pushing for a new independence referendum, arguing that Brexit has radically changed the political and economic landscape.
Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has pledged to hold such a vote in October 2023. But new Prime Minister Liz Truss, like Johnson, says her government will not agree, and without its approval a referendum would not be binding.
Amid the political deadlock, Sturgeon has appealed to the courts for the power to call a referendum on her own. The U.K. Supreme Court is to start hearing the case next month.
As monarch, Charles is required to remain politically neutral. His mother caused a stir in 2014 when she remarked that Scots should “think very carefully” before voting — a remark widely seen as opposing independence.
Even after that comment, the queen remained widely respected by people on both sides of Scotland’s independence debate. Sturgeon, the pro-independence first minister, praised Elizabeth on Monday as “the Queen of Scots” and “the great constant -- the anchor of our nation.”
Pauline Maclaran, an expert on royal culture at Royal Holloway University of London, said “it will remain to be seen if Charles can command the same loyalty” as his mother.
“There will be a honeymoon period for Charles, I think, where everybody — out of respect, but also their own feelings — will lay off the usual demands for independence,” she said.
But Maclaran felt that period would not last.
“I think they (demands for Scottish independence) will come back. And I think the whole question will be how much can Charles build his bonds with them? What bonds does he have? That will then be one of his tests, that’s for sure,” she said.
Stepping up: More scrutiny for next generation of royals
Prince William and wife Kate made a surprise joint appearance with Prince Harry and wife Meghan on Saturday, warmly greeting a large crowd gathered outside Windsor Castle to remember their long-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II.
Their “walkabout," the first time the brothers have appeared amicably together in public since March 2020, comes at a time when the younger generation of Britain's royal family must step up their responsibilities significantly.
William, long second-in-line to the throne, is now the heir apparent after his father, King Charles III, became Britain's new monarch upon his mother's death. That means William and Kate, both 40 and parents of three young children, immediately assume a much more central role as the new face of the monarchy.
William and Harry had been on frosty terms since Harry quit as a senior royal and moved to the U.S. two years ago. Their show of unity Saturday was reportedly initiated by William and left some observers hoping that Harry, 37, might return to the fray and support his elder brother in sharing the heavy workload now on William’s shoulders.
Read:Queen Elizabeth II's funeral on September 19
“Certainly William and Catherine, as the new Prince and Princess of Wales, will be even more in the media spotlight if that’s possible,” said Joe Little, managing editor of Majesty magazine. “Until Thursday, there was a buffer between him and the throne. That buffer has now been removed.”
It’s a stark contrast to how thing were just two weeks ago, when William and Kate announced they were moving their family from central London to a more rural base in Windsor. Observers thought they were seeking more privacy and a more “normal” upbringing for their children, who just started a new year together at a private school.
Long before he ascended to the throne, Charles indicated that he wanted a “slimmed down” monarchy with a tighter core group of full-time working royals and lower expenses.
That was before Harry's move — and before the princes' uncle, Prince Andrew, was effectively banished from public life following sexual misconduct scandals.
Not many other recognizable “working royals” — members of the royal family who officially represent the monarch — were left to share the hundreds of official engagements and numerous overseas visits undertaken each year.
The group includes Charles and his wife, Camilla, now the Queen Consort; William and Kate; the queen’s only daughter, Princess Anne; and the queen’s youngest child, Prince Edward, and his wife, Sophie. Also working royals, but much lesser known, are the queen’s first cousin, Prince Richard, and his wife, Birgitte.
In his first speech to the nation, which was broadcast Friday, Charles formally bestowed his own title, the Prince of Wales, to William. Kate is now the Princess of Wales, and is the first person since William’s late mother, Princess Diana, to hold the title.
William and Kate also inherit Charles and Camilla’s other honorary titles, the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall. That means managing and taking income from the Duchy of Cornwall, an estate comprising land across the U.K. that is reportedly worth 1 billion pounds.
“With Catherine beside him, our new Prince and Princess of Wales will, I know, continue to inspire and lead our national conversations, helping to bring the marginal to the center ground where vital help can be given,” Charles said Friday.
In his speech, Charles said he knows won't be able to devote as much time and energy to causes he cares most about, such as the environment and climate change.
Read: King Charles III officially announced Britain’s monarch, ceremony aired live for the first time
William will now likely spend more time championing those topics. He already made his mark by founding the Earthshot Prize, an ambitious “legacy project” expected to hand out millions of pounds in grants for environmental initiatives over the next 10 years.
“It will be some time before the reality of life without Grannie will truly feel real,” William wrote in a statement Saturday. “I will honour her memory by supporting my father, The King, in every way I can.”
Charles also spoke briefly of Harry in his address to the nation, expressing his "love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas.”
Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, moved away from the U.K. to seek financial independence and freedom from severe British media scrutiny into their lives.
The couple is now settled in California with their two young children. Both Harry and Meghan repeatedly have aired their unhappiness with the royals since their departure.
Those tensions were put aside Saturday, as the two princes and their wives arrived in the same car to greet people who pressed against road barriers outside the gates of Windsor Castle. Each royal stopped to speak to both children and adults, accepting flowers and condolences from an excited crowd.
“It was so beautiful to see. I felt so emotional and I felt the queen would have loved it," said Banita Ranow, 28. Her mother, Baljinder, said the visit was “fabulous."
“I just hope in the future they remain like that and that the brothers come together," she said.
What’s next for the UK as King Charles III starts his reign
The death of Queen Elizabeth II has triggered a series of carefully structured ceremonial and constitutional steps, as Britain undergoes a period of national mourning and heralds the reign of King Charles III.
The long-established 10-day plan, code-named Operation London Bridge, has been adapted to the specific circumstances of the queen’s death in Scotland, and some details haven’t been publicly confirmed.
Friday, Sept. 9
— King Charles III and his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, traveled from Balmoral Castle in Scotland to London.
— At noon, church bells rang at Westminster Abbey, St. Paul’s Cathedral and across the country in honor of the queen.
— Also at noon, Parliament held a special session so lawmakers can pay tribute to the queen.
— A 1 p.m., gun salutes were fired in London’s Hyde Park and at military sites around the country, one round for reach of the 96 years of the queen’s life.
— Afternoon — The king met with new Prime Minister Liz Truss.
— 6 p.m. — The king made a televised address to the nation in which he spoke of his “profound sorrow” over the death of his mother, the queen, and vowed to continue her “lifelong service” to others.
— 6 p.m. — A service of remembrance was held at St. Paul’s Cathedral for the queen.
Saturday, Sept. 10
— 10 a.m. — Charles meets at St. James’s Palace with senior officials known as the Accession Council and is officially proclaimed king.
— 11 a.m. — An official reads the proclamation aloud from a balcony at St. James’s Palace. It is also read out in other locations across the U.K.
— 1 p.m. — Parliament holds a second day of tributes to the queen.
Subsequent days:
— The queen’s body is moved from Balmoral Castle in the Scottish Highlands to Edinburgh, where the coffin is likely to rest at Holyrood Palace before being moved to St. Giles’ Cathedral so members of the public can pay their respects.
— The coffin will be transported by train or plane to London.
— The queen will then lie in state for several days in Parliament’s Westminster Hall, where the public will again be able to pay their respects.
Read: British sports hold day of mourning for Queen Elizabeth II
— A state funeral at Westminster Abbey will be attended by leaders and dignitaries from around the world.
— The period of national mourning will end the day after the queen’s funeral.