Canada welcomes King Charles against a backdrop of tensions with Trump : NPR

Britain’s King Charles III is greeted by an honor guard after arriving at Macdonald-Cartier International Airport in Ottawa, Canada, on Monday.

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Ben Stansall/AFP via Getty Images

King Charles III and Queen Camilla have arrived in Canada at the start of a two-day visit widely seen as bolstering the country’s sovereignty amid threats by President Trump to turn the United States’ northern neighbor into the 51^st state.

The King was met at the airport in the nation’s capital, Ottawa, by dignitaries, including Canada’s new prime minister, Mark Carney, and the country’s first indigenous governor general, Mary Simon, who is the king’s representative in Canada.

Carney, who was elected on an anti-Trump platform in April, asked the king to visit shortly after he became leader of the Liberal political party. At the time, Trump had imposed tariffs on Canada and was taunting to annex the country.

 In a statement, Carney said the king’s visit was an historic honor that matches the weight of the times.

“It speaks to our enduring tradition and friendship, to the vitality of our constitutional monarchy and our distinct identity, and to the historic ties that crises only fortify,” Carney said.

Carney and the king are due to have a meeting during the visit.

Well wishers wave flags before the arrival of Britain’s King Charles III and Queen Camilla at a Lansdowne Park community event in Ottawa, Canada, on Sunday.

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Dave Chan/AFP via Getty Images

On Tuesday, King Charles will read a speech from the throne to open a new session of Canada’s parliament, the first time a monarch has done that since 1977, when Queen Elizabeth addressed the senate.

It will be a largely ceremonial event, but it underlines a distinct difference in how the democracies of the U.S. and Canada differ. Canada is a constitutional monarchy and the king is the country’s head of state.

The speech from the throne lays out the Canadian government’s plans for the future. Although read by Charles, it will be written by Carney’s office and is expected to robustly defend Canada’s sovereignty — much as the prime minister did on the campaign trail.

This is Charles’ first trip to Canada since he was crowned king in 2023. An earlier trip planned for last year was cancelled after he was diagnosed with cancer. He has often spoken warmly about Canada and its people, calling them “outward-looking, big-hearted people” during a visit in May 2022.