President Cyril Ramaphosa is heading to Buckingham Palace in the latter part of November for his first state visit following the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, who was laid to rest last month.
The president will be accompanied by the First lady, Dr Tshepo Motsepe, who will be part of the three-day visit from 22 November to 24 November 2022. This was confirmed in a media statement from the Royal House issued on Monday, which indicated that the recently inaugurated King Charles III would be welcoming the president to the UK for what has been described as high-level talks.
King Charles III recently succeeded his late mother Queen Elizabeth II, last month who was given a State send-off attended by leaders of the world, including US President Joe Biden, our very own Cyril Ramaphosa, and Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor and many others.
The newly-minted British monarch has visited South Africa on several occasions since 1997. He was among the guests at former state president Nelson Mandela’s funeral in 2013.
According to Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) spokesperson Clayton Monyela, the invite by the Royal Household underscores the importance of South Africa as the regional voice on global affairs.
"The invitation also confirms that South Africa continues to be regarded as an important and influential voice in regional and global affairs. In addition to bilateral matters, President Cyril Ramaphosa will use this occasion to share (with the king) South Africa's perspectives on global developments. Having the honour of being invited and hosted by His Majesty King Charles III for his first state visit is a strong statement regarding the strategic nature of the relations between South Africa and the UK", Monyela said.
In a statement on Monday, Buckingham Palace announced that Ramaphosa accepted Charles’s invitation for a state visit from November 22 to 24. However, the Presidency had not commented on the news at the time of going to print.
Ramaphosa is fresh from attending the state funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth II on 19 September. On 8 September 2022, Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth nations and the longest-reigning British monarch, died at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, who had visited the US during this time, flew straight from America to attend the Queen’s funeral on 19 September 2022 after announcing that he would be cutting his trip back to the US short immediately after the funeral due to the rolling power cuts that affected the country for over three weeks now.
“The British High Commissioner to South Africa, led by Antony John Phillipson, has confirmed the impending state visit, which has also been accepted by Dr Motsepe. The High Commissioner to South Africa welcomes the announcement from Buckingham Palace that President Cyril Ramaphosa, accompanied by Dr Tshepo Motsepe, who will pay a State Visit to the UK 22-24 November,“ Antony John Phillipson said.
According to Phillipson, the visit will be key to strengthening relations between he two countries who in have past have been trading parters for a long time.
“This will be the first state visit hosted by His Majesty. It reflects the importance of the relationship between South Africa and the UK. The visit will offer a chance to celebrate our modern-day partnerships, delivering prosperity and security for both countries, as well as to set out how we can work together bilaterally and globally to strengthen those links for the future,” he said.