Queen Rania of Jordan pays tribute to Her Majesty, 95, as a ‘strong woman’ who she ‘personally looks up to’, as she welcomes Prince Charles and Camilla to Amman – and says she hopes the monarch has ‘many more years ahead’
- Queen Rania of Jordan welcomed the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall to Al Husseiniya Palace in Amman on Tuesday morning
- Charles, 73, and Camilla, 74, landed at Queen Alia International Airport before being whisked to the palace to spend the day with Rania and King Abdullah II
- Speaking about Queen’s health, after she was forced to pull out of the Remembrance Service, Jordanian queen sent her best wishes
- Saying Her Majesty was ‘a strong woman and even at this age, she’s very active’
Queen Rania of Jordan today addressed Her Majesty’s recent health issues, saying she was a ‘strong woman’ with ‘hopefully many more years ahead of her’.
The 51-year-old wife of King Abdullah II, who was speaking at Al Husseiniya Palace in Amman after welcoming the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall there this morning, said: ‘we can all just hope to be as active as she is at that age’ before sending the Jordanian royal family’s best wishes to the British Monarch.
The 95-year-old Queen was said to be ‘deeply disappointed’ at having to take the 11th hour decision not to lead the nation’s remembrance of its war dead in Westminster on Sunday because of a back sprain.
Heir-to-the-throne Charles and Camilla represented the Queen at the Cenotaph before jetting out on their first overseas tour since the pandemic began on Sunday afternoon.
The British royals touched down in Amman this morning and have spent much of their first day with King Abdullah II and Queen Rania.
Queen Rania of Jordan welcomed the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall to Al Husseiniya Palace on Tuesday. In a video interview in which she touched upon the Queen’s health, she said: ‘We can all just hope to be as active as she is at that age. Our best wishes are always to her and hopefully she’ll have many more years ahead of her.’
The Queen pictured with Queen Rania and King Abdullah II during a private audience at Buckingham Palace in February 2019. Today, Queen Rania told TV reporters the Queen was ‘someone that we hold in really high regard’
This afternoon, Queen Rania, who has been married to King Abdullah II for 27 years and has met Her Majesty many times, expressed her support in a television interview.
She told reporters of the Queen: ‘She’s someone that we hold in really high regard.
‘She’s someone I look to personally and I think the whole world thinks of her as a symbol of what it means to be a true figurehead and stateswoman – and just giving inspiration to the rest of the world through her discipline, her hard work, her steady approach to everything.’
The Jordanian royal, who was wearing an elegant cream coat dress, added: ‘We can all find comfort when we think of her and we’re always concerned for her health but she’s a strong woman and even at this age, she’s very active.
‘We can all just hope to be as active as she is at that age. Our best wishes are always to her and hopefully she’ll have many more years ahead of her.’
The Duchess of Cornwall, in vibrant floral blue, is welcomed by Queen Rania at the palace in Amman this morning; the women will discuss Rania’s charity work to protect vulnerable children and mothers including a visit to the centre the 51-year-old founded in Amman
The Duchess is facing a packed schedule during their mini Middle Eastern tour which will see them take in two countries in just four days
The Jordanian queen chats to Camilla as they listen to workers at the Queen Rania Family and Children Centre explain how play helps the vulnerable children who visit the centre
The royals look on as they watch two women weave with brightly-coloured wool at the centre founded by Queen Rania
Charles and Camilla, who spent yesterday enjoying some rest time in the Middle Eastern country, looked relaxed as they disembarked their ministerial plane, Voyager, on the tarmac at Queen Alia International Airport in capital city Amman this morning.
The royals are spending four days in both Jordan and Egypt and are representing the Government during the trip – with climate change thought to be high on the agenda for discussion.
After landing in the city to a guard of honour, they were whisked to meet the Jordanian royals at Al Husseiniya Palace in the capital city.
Speaking on the first day of the tour, The Prince of Wales paid tribute to the enduring ties between the UK and Jordan, saying the ‘relationship has mattered even more and matters a great deal within the UK’.