The Biden administration on Thursday extended deepest sympathies to His Majesty The King, the entire Royal Family, the people of the United Kingdom and the peoples of the Commonwealth, including the Caribbean, on the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Buckingham Palace said on Thursday that the queen died at her summer estate in Scotland after 70 years on the British throne.
“For more than 70 years – a period during which the United Kingdom and the world witnessed unprecedented change – Queen Elizabeth personified a sense of stability,” said US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken in a statement. “During a time of tremendous division, she was a source of unity.
“Her influence extended well beyond the Commonwealth,” he added. “As Queen, she visited more than 120 countries, including the United States, where she made a point of meeting not only with leaders but with people from all walks of life.”
Blinken said Queen Elizabeth was “the embodiment of the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom, and a symbol of the enduring alliance that has seen our nations through the greatest tests of the 20th and 21st centuries.
“We join people around the world in mourning her passing, and we will forever be inspired by the memory of her service, leadership and friendship,” he added.
In a White House Proclamation, US President Joe Biden said Queen Elizabeth II was “more than a monarch,” stating that she “defined an era.”
“In a world of constant change, she was a steadying presence and a source of comfort and pride for generations of Britons, including many who have never known their country without her,” he said. “Queen Elizabeth II led always with grace, an unwavering commitment to duty and the incomparable power of her example.
“She was a stateswoman of unmatched dignity and constancy, who deepened the bedrock Alliance between the United Kingdom and the United States,” the US president added. “She helped make our relationship special. The seven decades of her history-making reign bore witness to an age of unprecedented human advancement and the forward march of human dignity. Her legacy will loom large in the pages of British history, and in the story of our world.”
As a mark of respect for the memory of Queen Elizabeth II, Biden ordered that the flag of the United States be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset on the day of interment.
Biden also directed that the US flag be flown at half-staff for the same length of time at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices and other facilities abroad, including those in the Caribbean, and on all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.
In a separate statement by Biden and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden, the Bidens said Queen Elizabeth II “united people across the Commonwealth.
“The seven decades of her history-making reign bore witness to an age of unprecedented human advancement and the forward march of human dignity,” they said. “Supported by her beloved Prince Philip for 73 years, Queen Elizabeth II led always with grace, an unwavering commitment to duty, and the incomparable power of her example.
“Today, the thoughts and prayers of people all across the United States are with the people of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth in their grief,” the Bidens added. “We send our deepest condolences to the Royal Family, who are not only mourning their Queen, but their dear mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.
“Her legacy will loom large in the pages of British history, and in the story of our world,” they continued.
