BEIJING –
Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed his condolences to the royal family on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.
He noted in the Friday statement that Elizabeth was the first British monarch to visit China, which she did in 1986. “Her death is a great loss to the British people.”
The statement added that China is willing to work with King Charles III as an opportunity to promote bilateral relations and benefit both countries and their people.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang also sent a message of condolence to British Prime Minister Liz Truss.
The Queen’s death on Thursday comes amid tensions between Britain and China over human rights, trade and China’s relentless crackdown on free speech and political opposition in the former British colony of Hong Kong.
The queen’s death was a hot topic on Chinese social media, with many saying her death marks the end of an era.
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CANBERRA, Australia — Malcolm Turnbull, the leader of a failed campaign for an Australian president to replace the British monarch as Australian head of state and later prime minister, came close to tears on Friday as he paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II.
Turnbull was chairman of the Australian Republican Movement in 1999 when Australians voted in a referendum against the nation becoming a republic, severing its constitutional ties with the Queen. He served as Prime Minister between 2015 and 2018, during which time the Queen presented him with a photo of herself with her husband, Prince Philip.
Turnbull’s voice shook as he recalled looking at the picture on Thursday night before he and his wife Lucy Turnbull went to bed with a sense of dread over news from Buckingham Palace of the Queen’s failing health .
“I took the Queen’s portrait out and put it up and we just thought, ‘What an amazing life. What incredible leadership,” Turnbull told Australian Broadcasting Corp.
“It’s the end of an era and hopefully the future, after the Queen passes away, will be one where we have leadership as dedicated and selfless as she has shown,” Turnbull added.
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TORONTO — Elton John paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II during her concert in Toronto on Thursday night, saying he was inspired by her and was sad that she was gone.
“She led the country through some of our greatest and darkest times with grace and decency and genuine caring,” John said.
“I’m very sad that she’s no longer with me, but I’m glad she’s at peace,” he said. “I’m glad she’s resting and deserves it. She’s worked very hard.”
The singer-songwriter then performed his 1974 track “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.”
John was knighted by the Queen in 1998, a year after his friend Princess Diana died. Prince Charles also made the musician and charity patron a member of the Order of Companions of Honor last year.
John’s concert was part of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, billed as his final tour.
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Condolences poured in from around the world after the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese mourned the Queen as the only reigning monarch most Australians have known and the only one to ever visit their country.
“And over seven remarkable decades, Her Majesty has been a rare and reassuring constant amid rapid change,” he said. “Through the noise and turbulence of the years, she embodied and exhibited a timeless decency and enduring calm.”
The British monarch is Australia’s formal head of state, although these days the role is seen as primarily ceremonial.
US President Joe Biden signed the book of condolences at the British Embassy in Washington and his wife, Jill Biden, brought a bouquet of flowers. The president was heard telling embassy staff, “We mourn for you all. She was a great lady.”
French President Emmanuel Macron praised the Queen’s “immutable moral authority”, her intimate knowledge and the stability she brought “through the fluctuations and upheavals of politics, a permanence with the scent of eternity”.
Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness, who announced this year that the British Commonwealth intended to become fully independent, said: “We are saddened not to see his light again, but we will remember his historic reign.”
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Queen Elizabeth II was “the heart and soul of the United Kingdom” and her passing was greatly mourned by all in the city-state.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro declared three days of mourning and tweeted that she “was not just queen to the British; she was a queen to us all”.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol tweeted their condolences, and Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah mourned the Queen on Facebook as “a towering figure” dedicated to serving the people of the UK and the Commonwealth.
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The Foreign Minister of Myanmar’s National Unity Government, an underground parallel government that is leading Myanmar’s struggle for democracy against its military-led government, posted her condolences on Twitter.
“I am deeply saddened by the news of the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. On behalf of @NUGMyanmar and the people of Myanmar, I express our deepest condolences to the Royal Family and people of the UK and Commonwealth ,” Zin Mar Aung wrote.
Myanmar, then called Burma, gained independence from British colonial rule in 1948.
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The King and Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia have offered their condolences on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.
Statements released early Friday in Saudi state media quote King Salman as saying Queen Elizabeth was “a model of leadership that will be immortalized in history.”
He added: “We recall with satisfaction the efforts of the deceased to consolidate the relations of friendship and cooperation between our two friendly countries, as well as the high international status which Her Majesty enjoyed throughout the decades during which she acceded to the throne of your friendly country. country.”
Her young son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also offered his condolences, saying the queen was “an example of wisdom, love and peace”.
He added: “The world remembers today the great impact and deeds she had throughout her reign.”
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WELLINGTON, New Zealand – New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told reporters she was awakened shortly before 5 a.m. by a police officer who lit a torch in her room to tell her the news of the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Under New Zealand’s constitutional arrangements, the Queen was also New Zealand’s monarch and head of state.
“The final days of the Queen’s life capture who she was in so many ways,” Ardern said. “Working to the end on behalf of the people she loved.”
Ardern said the Queen was an extraordinary woman who she would remember for her laughter. Ardern said that, like many other people, she not only felt deep sadness but also deep gratitude.
“Here is a woman who gave her life, totally, in the service of others. And no matter what one thinks of the role of monarchies in the world, there is undeniably, I think here, a demonstration of someone who gave his all in the name of his people, and his people included the people of Aotearoa in New Zealand.”
Ardern said New Zealand had entered a period of official mourning and would hold a state memorial service after the official funeral in Britain.
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LONDON — Several sporting events in Britain have been canceled as a mark of respect following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
The BMW PGA Championship golf event immediately suspended play on Thursday and the course and practice facilities will be closed on Friday.
The England and Wales Cricket Board have said Friday’s match in the second Test between England and South Africa at the Oval will not take place.
Horse racing meetings in Britain were suspended on Thursday evening and Friday, and domestic rugby matches in England and Scotland were canceled on Thursday and matches will not be played at the weekend either.
Friday’s stage of the Tour of Britain cycling has been called off, with a decision on the final two stages of the weekend expected to be made in due course.
In New York, a minute’s silence was observed ahead of the US Open women’s semifinals on Thursday night. “We would like to pause to remember Queen Elizabeth II,” the stadium announcer said. “Our thoughts are with the people of the UK today. Remember to be part of us in a second of silence.”