King declares ‘love and deep connection’ for Romania on hiking holiday

THE King has declared his “love” for and “deep connection” to Romania as he marked a quarter of a century since he first visited the country.

The monarch was welcomed to Bucharest on Thursday by the president, a Guard of Honour and a reception in Cotroceni Palace. He said: “I can scarcely believe that 25 years have gone by since my first visit to this most remarkable country, although even before I came here I felt a deep connection to Romania.”

It marks his first trip abroad since being crowned on May 6, and he has chosen to travel to one of his favourite countries alone for a private visit of rest and recuperation.

The monarch has deep ties with Romania, where he owns at least 10 properties and makes an annual trip to walk through the picturesque hills and paint near his holiday home in the village of Viscri.

In his speech, he hailed the country’s natural beauty, saying: “I have come to love Romania; your culture and art, your heritage and history, your sweeping landscapes and priceless biodiversity. Romania has retained, in its ancient

‘I have come to love Romania; your culture and art, heritage and history, your sweeping landscapes’

forests, pristine countryside, and through some remarkable examples of sustainable farming, an incomparable richness of Nature. This is still home to many species of flora and fauna that have disappeared, or are threatened elsewhere in Europe and the world, which makes it all the more precious.”

He said he “wanted to remind the world of everything that has always made Romania such a special country” and commended their “incredibly generous support to all our Ukrainian friends.”

Klaus Iohannis, the Romanian president told the King that they were “honoured” to be his first visit abroad since the Coronation, adding that it sent an “extremely important message that Your Majesty’s bond with these lands remains as strong as ever.”

He said: “On behalf of all Romanians, I convey to Your Majesty our appreciation and gratitude for the genuine contribution in protecting and celebrating the values which are a core part of our national identity: nature, our rural landscape and our rich cultural heritage.”.

♦ The Prince of Wales has met a car crash victim he rescued while working as an East Anglian Air Ambulance pilot. The Prince invited Jack Beeton, 25, to Windsor Castle after his girlfriend Olivia wrote to him to ask for a meeting so Mr Beeton could express his gratitude. Mr Beeton, from Littleport, near Ely, Cambs, suffered multiple injuries after a head-on collision between his uncle’s van and a lorry in 2015 in which the uncle was killed. Prince William later described it as one of the most “daunting” rescues he had attended.