英女王、コロナ感染後初の対面公務　カナダ首相に接見

【ＡＦＰ＝時事】英国のエリザベス女王（９５）は７日、訪英中のカナダのジャスティン・トルドー首相に接見した。女王が対面で公務に臨むのは、先月の新型コロナウイルス感染後では初めて。（写真は英ロンドン西部のウィンザー城で、カナダのジャスティン・トルドー首相（右）を迎えるエリザベス女王）
　トルドー首相はこの日、英国のボリス・ジョンソン首相とオランダのマルク・ルッテ首相とロシアのウクライナ侵攻について協議するため、英国を訪問。カナダの元首でもあるエリザベス女王に謁見（えっけん）した。
　女王はロンドン西部にある住まいのウィンザー城でトルドー氏を出迎えた。これまで使っていたつえは持っていなかった。以前よりも弱々しく見えたが、首相と握手を交わすと、談笑した。
　テーブルにはウクライナの国旗と同じ黄色と青の大きな花束が飾られており、同国への支持をそれとなしに表しているようにも見受けられた。エリザベス女王は先週、ウクライナ難民支援のために寄付を行った。
　英王室は先月２０日、女王が新型ウイルス検査で陽性となったと発表。症状は「軽度」とされたが、外国要人との面会を中止していた。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2022/03/08-10:22）

Queen Elizabeth II on Monday met visiting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in her first in-person engagement since falling ill with Covid-19.
The 95-year-old monarch, who is also queen of Canada, chatted with Trudeau after he jetted in for talks on the conflict in Ukraine with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte.
Last week the queen donated to an appeal for funds to help Ukrainian refugees, while her eldest son and heir, Prince Charles, called the invasion an attack on freedom.
In what could be seen as another subtle sign of support, she and Trudeau shook hands in front of table at her Windsor Castle home, west of London, with a large bouquet of yellow and blue flowers -- the colours of Ukraine.
At a Downing Street news conference after meeting Johnson and Rutte, Trudeau said he congratulated her on becoming the first British monarch in history to reign for 70 years.
I was able to talk a little bit about the situations we're facing and draw on her long experience for having seen much over these past decades, he told reporters.
He added: I have the particular privilege of having known Her Majesty for about 45 years now and I can tell you that in my conversation with her this morning, she was as insightful and perspicacious as ever, very interested in what's going on.
The queen, who came to the throne in 1952, has visited Canada more than 20 times and in the 1970s met a young Trudeau when his father, Pierre, was prime minister.
Canada is one of the 14 Commonwealth countries outside the UK where she is also queen and head of state.
- 'A lot better' -
Buckingham Palace announced on February 20 that the queen had tested positive for coronavirus and she was forced to cancel a series of appointments with foreign diplomats.
News that she had mild symptoms of Covid-19 heightened fears for her health that have lingered since she had an unscheduled overnight stay in hospital last October.
She was forced to slow down on medical advice and cancelled a number of public engagements, including hosting world leaders at the UN climate change summit last November.
Her public appearances have become rarer since, and in one recent audience she complained of mobility problems. She has been seen walking with a stick, and is visibly frailer.
But Prince Charles told members of the public on a royal visit last week that his mother, who turns 96 next month, was now feeling a lot better.
She returned to public engagements last week, hosting a number of new foreign ambassadors by videolink, and is due at two public events next week and later this month.
Next Monday, she is scheduled to attend the Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey in central London and a memorial for her late husband at the same venue on March 29.
Prince Philip, her husband of 73 years, died aged 99 last April.
Public celebrations are being planned for the queen's Platinum Jubilee in early June.
Senior royals are preparing for a series of overseas visits in the coming weeks, including Charles and his second wife Camilla, heading to Ireland.
His eldest son, second-in-line Prince William and his wife Catherine are due in the Caribbean to visit Belize, The Bahamas and Jamaica.