OTTAWA, Ontario — (AP) — King Charles III arrives in Ottawa on Monday, a visit that will underscore Canada’s sovereignty to U.S. President Donald Trump.
Trump’s repeated suggestion that the U.S. annex its northern neighbor prompted Prime Minister Mark Carney to invite Charles to give the speech from the throne that will outline his government’s agenda for the new Parliament.
The king is the head of state in Canada, which is a member of the British Commonwealth of former colonies.
Carney and Canada’s first indigenous Governor General, Mary Simon, the king’s representative in Canada, will greet the king and Queen Camilla as well a 25-member Royal Canadian Dragoons’ honor guard, for which the king is colonel-in-chief.
Charles and Camilla’s presence “at this pivotal moment in our history holds profound significance,” Simon said in a statement Monday. “It reaffirms the enduring constitutional bond that has shaped Canada’s journey into a proud and independent nation.”
“Their visit invites us to reflect on who we are …