Britain's Prince Charles will not attend next week's State banquet in honour of the Chinese president.
Prince Charles
Buckingham Palace has confirmed that although the Prince of Wales will meet President Xi Jinping during the state visit, he will not be attending the event hosted by his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, the Daily Telegraph newspaper reports.
The 66-year-old royal has reportedly had a troubled relationship with China for decades, in part because of his support for the disputed territory of Tibet whose spiritual leader The Dalai Lama is a close friend of his.
The banquet will not be the first time Prince Charles has been absent from an event because of his views, however.
In 1999 he snubbed a banquet that was held at the Chinese Embassy in London in hour of the Queen while in 2005 he boycotted the official banquet during the last State visit by a Chinese leader and in 2008 he refused to attend the Olympic Games in Beijing.
Despite his decision to not attend the upcoming banquet, Charles will greet the Chinese delegation at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London and will attend a formal welcome on Horse Guards Parade and a luncheon later that day as well as inviting President Xi for tea at Clarence House.
Meanwhile, Charles' son Prince William made a successful official visit to China earlier this year and will be attending the State banquet with his wife, Duchess Catherine.
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