Queen Elizabeth II has moved to postpone the annual Diplomatic Reception, where royals were supposed to meet with over 500 members of the diplomatic corps. Buckingham Palace announced the change of plan on Saturday.
The news comes almost a week after the 95-year-old monarch, who welcomes the 70th anniversary of her accession on Feb. 6, tested positive for COVID-19. When officials confirmed her COVID-19 diagnosis, get-well wishes from across Britain’s political spectrum were quickly sent to the Queen.
The Palace said Elizabeth II weighed heavily on the Foreign Secretary's advice to postpone the gathering, which was originally set to take place at Windsor Castle on March 2. People reported that the foreign secretary’s guidance came amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine earlier this week.
The war is still evolving as threats mount against the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, a city of 2.8 million people.
At this time, no further details on the rescheduled date for the Diplomatic Reception have been given to the media.
Earlier in the week, Her Majesty postponed several virtual meetings after experiencing cold-like symptoms though she had her weekly audience with Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday via telephone, according to USA Today.
The Queen had been fully vaccinated and had a booster shot. Following news that she contracted the virus, the palace said she would continue with “light” duties at Windsor Castle over the coming week as she recovers.
Her eldest son, Prince Charles, 73, and her 74-year-old daughter-in-law, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, also contracted COVID-19 earlier this month. Charles has since returned to work.
In October, concerns were raised about the monarch's health when she spent a night in the hospital for unspecified preliminary investigations, which saw her cancel at least two in-person appearances on doctors' orders, Reuters noted.
She then spent a fortnight at Windsor Castle to rest and has mostly been living in the Berkshire royal residence since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020.
In 1952, Elizabeth II was proclaimed Queen after her father, King George VI, died at their royal estate in Norfolk following surgery for lung cancer.
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