President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will be the only official representatives of the United States at Queen Elizabeth II‘s funeral after Buckingham Palace did not invite the president to assemble a delegation for the service.
The White House confirmed Sunday that Biden had accepted the invitation to attend the late 96-year-old monarch’s state funeral, scheduled for next Monday at Westminster Abbey in London. The first couple is expected to leave this Saturday for the proceedings.
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“I remember a message sent to the American people from Queen Elizabeth,” Biden said Sunday during a 9/11 memorial ceremony in Arlington, Virginia. “It was on Sept. 11. Her ambassador read a prayer of service at St. Thomas Church in New York, where she poignantly reminded us, ‘Grief is the price we pay for love.'”
Biden, who is vocal regarding his Irish heritage, told reporters last week he would be at the queen’s funeral but conceded he had not been advised of many details concerning the event.
“I know him,” he said when asked if he had been in contact with her successor, King Charles III. “I haven’t spoken to him. I did not call him yet.”
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For previous state funerals, including for South Africa’s first black president Nelson Mandela, organizers have invited the U.S. president to form a delegation.
