This article is author: Nanshan Passerby
html On the 319th, the British government held a solemn funeral for Queen Elizabeth II of . About 500 politicians from all over the country gathered in London to attend the funeral. Thousands of British people flocked to the streets to mourn the coffin of Elizabeth II of . British media said that the entire UK's funeral for the Queen was stagnant at this moment. This is the second state funeral held by the UK since the Churchill funeral in 1965. It is also the largest ceremonial event in the UK since World War II .
The funeral of Queen Elizabeth II of England was undoubtedly solemn and dignified, but outside the funeral, the arrangements of the British government were criticized.
According to Global Network cited BBC, although the British government had a plan for the death and funeral of the queen, it was a mess in actual implementation. The BBC quoted a British official as saying that the funeral was equivalent to 100 state visits by foreign politicians, and there would inevitably be a mistake in a hurry.
Previously, the British Foreign Ministry proposed that due to the insufficient airport staff and tarmac on the day of the funeral, and considering traffic congestion, it is recommended that government officials from all countries take civil aviation passenger planes to the UK. After arriving in the UK, guests from all over the country first went to the Royal Chelsea Hospital in western London to meet, and then took a bus to Westminster Abbey .
As soon as the British Foreign Ministry’s suggestion was released, it immediately caused complaints from embassies of various countries in the UK. An ambassador said, can you imagine that Biden and are crowded in the big bus with politicians from all over the world? Or the scene of Türkiye President Erdogan huddled with the Thai king? Is this the British government’s plan for many years?
" Times " quoted a person familiar with the matter as saying that in response to the British government's request for taking a bus, the US Embassy directly replied "impossible". The French side also firmly expressed its opposition. In the end, only US President Biden, French President Macron , Israeli President Herzog and the Japanese Emperor Naruhito were allowed to take a special car to the funeral.
This differentiated treatment once again caused dissatisfaction among foreign dignitaries attending the funeral. At least five developed countries, including the member states of G7, diplomats from at least five developed countries protested to the British government, demanding that their heads of state receive the same treatment as Biden; an Kuwait official said that the Charles king has established a deep friendship with the Gulf countries. If he visits the Gulf countries, they will not let Charles take the bus like a primary school student; Turkish President Erdogan refused to attend the funeral because he was unable to take his own car and sent the foreign minister to participate instead.
Although the British government allowed Biden to take a special car to the funeral site, he still encountered traffic jams and was blocked on the streets of London. Biden's luxury convoy quickly caused complaints on social media: "Is this the US president who talks about climate change every day? Look at this luxury convoy, how much exhaust gas can they emit when they start."
The British government obviously did not prepare an emergency plan for traffic jams and the lateness of the Biden and his wife. When the Bidens arrived at Westminster Abbey , due to lateness, they were told that in order not to destroy the carefully prepared parade, they could only stand at the main entrance of the church to wait. During this period, the British government did not send any officials to receive the Bidens who were waiting awkwardly at the door of the church. It was not until the parade that the Bidens were able to enter the church.
At the same time, the British government's arrogance towards foreign guests is also controversial. Saudi Crown Prince Salman Jr. originally received an invitation from the British government to attend the Queen's funeral, but when he arrived in London, British MPs and media began to hype the "Kashukgi murder case" and demanded that the British criminal court prohibit Salman Jr. from attending the funeral. Salman Jr. was angry by Britain's capricious statements and declared that it was an insult to the Saudi royal family. He immediately led a delegation to leave the UK and sent the Minister of State to attend the funeral.
In addition to Saudi Arabia, the UK also sent invitation letters to Iran , North Korea and Nicaragua , but a few days before the funeral, the British Foreign Ministry suddenly asked the above three countries to only send ambassadors to attend the funeral, otherwise they would not be allowed to attend.
It is obvious that The funeral of the Queen of England is actually a formal diplomatic event. Politicians from all over the world only come to attend the Queen's funeral for giving face to the British government, but the UK will insult guests in such formal diplomatic occasions. You should know that even Biden did not mention the "Kashoggi murder case" in front of Salman Jr. The British government's ideological and deliberately provoking trouble is really powerless to complain.
Not only that, the Times pointed out that in terms of guest arrangements, the British government also had the intention of "deliberately provoking trouble". The British government claims that due to the limited space of Westminster Abbey, partners and entourage members of various countries are not allowed to enter.
But in limited seats, the UK still invited people who were not popular with other governments, such as former Spanish king Juan Carlos , and the UK arranged for him to sit next to the couple of Spanish king Felipe VI. The relationship between the two generations of Spanish kings was complicated. The old king Juan Carlos had to give way to his son Felipe VI due to scandals such as keeping mistresses and corruption. Later, he exiled himself in Abu Dhabi . After Felipe VI ascended the throne, he announced that he would deprive the old king of royal allowances.
second row from the right: the old Spanish king and the current king couple
If nothing unexpected happens, the poorly-known old king attended the funeral of the British queen and was arranged by the British side to take a seat next to the current king, and was strongly criticized by various Spanish parties. In addition, under the intentional or unintentional arrangements of the British government, diplomats from India and Pakistan , Turkey and Greek , North Korea and South Korea, who all had conflicting countries met on the spot. The Times commented that the arrangements of the queen's funeral and foreign guests were originally complicated enough, and the British government did not forget to take the initiative to "induce trouble."
The funeral of Queen Elizabeth II of Britain could have become an opportunity for British Prime Minister Tras to show off his diplomatic means and image, but under the ideological control of Tras and the British royal family, the funeral became a "diplomatic nightmare": no emergency plan; insulting and making things difficult for guests; deliberately provoking conflicts... A diplomatic activity that could have brought relations between countries closer to each other exposed the regression of Britain's diplomatic level. Not to mention other countries, Britain offended Russia first and Saudi Arabia at the funeral. So can Britain survive this winter?
