King Charles III will cancel the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2022 – also known as COP27 – in Egypt next month.
The king – widely known for his decades of environmental activism as a prince – was advised against making the trip by new prime minister Liz Truss.
“It’s no secret that the king has been invited to go there,” a royal source told the Times of London. “He had to think very carefully about what steps to take for his first overseas tour and he will not be attending the COP.”
The 27th annual conference would have been Charles’ first trip abroad as a British sovereign, according to the newspaper.
The king was reportedly expecting to attend the conference and is likely to be “personally disappointed” at having to cancel the trip.
The source added that the government was urging Charles to stay at home “in the spirit that as king he is always careful that he acts on government advice”.
Charles, 73, has been committed to the environment since the 1970s and has become one of the world’s leading figures on climate change issues, earning him some support from younger generations, although he says he is “out of touch” due to his age became.
At the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2020, the then-Prince told the Times that “global warming, climate change and devastating biodiversity loss” are “the greatest threats humanity has ever faced.” On the same day, he praised Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, calling her “remarkable”.
Last year, Queen Elizabeth II attended COP26, held in Edinburgh, Scotland, where she praised the environmental efforts of Charles and his son Prince William.
“For my part, I hope this conference will be one of those rare occasions when everyone has a chance to rise above the politics of the moment and achieve true statesmanship,” she said at the time.