Queen to make rare appearance at G7 summit before meeting with Scott Morrison

Carbis Bay: The Queen will make a rare public appearance at the G7 summit with world leaders in Cornwall before meeting privately with Prime Minister Scott Morrison at Windsor Castle early next week.

The 95-year-old monarch, who on Thursday marked what would have been the 100th birthday of her late husband Prince Philip, will travel to the seaside town of Carbis Bay on Friday to headline a diplomatic offensive with the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States and European Union.

Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson, his wife Carrie Johnson and US President Joe Biden with first lady Jill Biden walk on the beach in Cornwall, ahead of the G7 Summit.Credit:Getty

US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister kickstarted the summit – the first major in-person meeting of leaders since the coronavirus pandemic – on Thursday afternoon local-time by signing an updated version of the Atlantic Charter, the pact forged by Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1941 outlining their vision for a post-war world.

Marking an end to the turbulent tenure of former president Donald Trump, Johnson described Biden as a “breath of fresh air” and stressed they were both particularly committed to action on climate change.

Johnson said the transatlantic relationship was of “massive, massive strategic importance for the prosperity and the security of the world”.

In a swipe directed at Russia and China, Biden and Johnson also said they were committed to democracy and the rule of law.

Queen Elizabeth II, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny during a private audience at Buckingham Palace in 2019.Credit:AP

“The US and the UK stick up for those two things together, so it’s incredibly important that we should affirm that,” he said.

In a message for Britain, Jill Biden’s black jacket had “LOVE” embroidered on the upper back, a fashion move that recalled her predecessor Melania Trump’s decision to wear a jacket with “I Really Don’t Care, Do U?” written on the back during a 2018 trip to a Texas border town.

Dr Biden said her jacket choice and message was to bring “love from America” and hope in a world grappling with the pandemic.

Morrison is expected to arrive in Cornwall on Friday morning (Friday evening AEDT) before holding a bilateral meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

‘Love from America’: Jill Biden, wearing a jacket with the phrase “Love” on the back, stands outside the Carbis Bay Hotel.Credit:Getty

He is also expected to meet with Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and German Chancellor Angela Merkel over Saturday and Sunday.

He will then dine with Johnson at Downing Street on Monday evening, where the pair will seek to finalise a new free trade deal between both countries.

As a guest of the G7, the Australian Prime Minister will not attend a reception to be held on Friday evening in Cornwall hosted by the Queen, Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, and Prince William and Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge.

However he is likely to see Australia’s head of state, the Queen, for a one-on-one at Windsor Castle early next week following the G7 summit and before his departure for Paris for meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron.

Biden will see the Queen at Friday evening’s event in Cornwall but will also call on her at Windsor Castle on Sunday. The Queen last met the US head of state in 2019, when Trump was in the United Kingdom for a state visit.

Morrison will on Saturday join a G7 discussion on COVID-19 vaccines and hear a new pledge by Johnson to donate 100 million vaccine doses internationally within a year.

US President Joe Biden talks with Prime Minister Boris Johnson in Carbis Bay, Cornwall, Britain, ahead of the G7 summit.Credit:AP

The G7 summit will take place over Friday, Saturday and Sunday and cover other topics including climate change, global taxation, national security and trade.

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