King Charles and Queen Camilla are set to visit Australia and Samoa

CNN
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of Britain King Charles III And Queen Camilla They plan to go down.

The royal couple will travel Australia As part of a tour in October, they will visit Samoa for this year’s Commonwealth Heads of State Conference, Buckingham Palace announced on Sunday.

The 75-year-old British monarch will visit Australia on his first visit to the Commonwealth of Nations since ascending to the throne. Apart from the United Kingdom, Charles is also the head of state of 14 countries, including Australia, New Zealand and Canada, although his role is largely ceremonial.

Charles and Camilla are “visiting the country at the invitation of the Australian Government, where their program will include engagements in the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales,” the palace said.

He last visited Australia with his wife six years ago, when they went to the opening of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings – or CHOGMs as they are known – are held every two years, with member states taking turns. The theme of this year’s event in Samoa, Charles’ first as head of the organization, is “A Resilient Future: Transforming Our Common Wealth” and will see representatives from 56 member states gather.

“Their Majesties’ state visit to Samoa will celebrate the strong bilateral relationship between the Pacific island nation and the UK,” the palace added.

Charles, who He resumed public facing duties in April He has had a busy calendar in recent months as he continues his cancer treatment. Last month, he attended D-Day memories In France.

Most recently, he appointed Keir Starmer as Prime Minister after Labor won A great success In the run-up to the vote, he traveled to Scotland for the annual “Holyrood Week”, which celebrates Scottish culture, and visited the Welsh Parliament in Cardiff on Thursday to mark 25 years of Welsh devolution. On Monday, the royal couple will embark on a two-day visit to the Channel Islands.

More details about the King and Queen’s tours are expected to be released in the coming months. However, a palace spokesman said that, as with all of Charles’ recent engagements, “his plans in both countries are subject to the advice of doctors and are subject to necessary changes on health grounds.”

Some may wonder why the royal couple didn’t visit New Zealand while they were there. A palace spokesman said the decision had been made in consultation with the king’s medical team to “avoid such an extended program at this time” to prioritize his continued recovery.

“In close consultation with the Prime Ministers of Australia and New Zealand, given time and logistical pressures, it has been agreed to limit the visit to Samoa and Australia only,” the spokesman said.

“Their Majesties send their warmest thanks and best wishes to all parties for their continued support and understanding,” they added.

The fact that the King has not visited any of the Commonwealth countries since his inauguration has raised eyebrows. His first foreign tours as king were met with great surprise Announced as France And Germany. Their travels continued KenyaIt is a member of the Commonwealth but not an empire.

Charles’ visit to Australia will be a major test of his popularity as head of state. The nation — colonized by the British in 1788 — has long debated whether a long-distance monarch is still needed. In a 1999 referendum on the issue voters favored a constitutional monarchy by 55% to 45%.

In other Commonwealth countries, the death of Queen Elizabeth II renewed rumblings – some louder than others – of moves to sever ties with the crown and become a republic. But in Australia, despite Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s pro-republican views, no. Immediately push in that direction.

If he takes a second term in power in 2025, Albanese has proposed holding a referendum on whether the country should become a republic. However, those plans appear to have been shelved to focus on more pressing challenges at home, such as the cost-of-living crisis.