President Joe Biden reportedly won’t be traveling across the pond for King Charles III ’s coronation. According to The Telegraph and The Washington Post , the U.S. president is “not expected” to attend the King’s coronation next month, and is instead planning on sending a delegation in his place.
The Telegraph reported that “America is keen to counter any perception of a snub and show support for the King by sending high-profile representatives, with one possibility under consideration being that Jill Biden, the first lady, could attend.”
Although he is not expected to attend the coronation, the president “may meet” King Charles in April during a visit to Northern Ireland to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.
Both the president and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden attended Queen Elizabeth’s state funeral at Westminster Abbey last September. Charles became monarch following the death of his beloved mother. The King will be crowned at London’s Westminster Abbey on May 6.
Prince Albert of Monaco confirmed to PEOPLE magazine earlier this year that he and his wife Princess Charlene are looking forward to attending King Charles’ coronation.
The Telegraph previously reported that members of foreign royal families are “expected to be invited to the ceremony in an historic break with tradition.” Per the outlet, “Convention dating back centuries stated that a coronation should be a sacred ceremony between a monarch and their people in the presence of God,” but the King is “set to do away with the tradition and invite his counterparts from around the world.”
Buckingham Palace has said that the coronation will reflect the monarch’s “role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry.”