00:00 go across France 24th Benedict Paveo standing by in London.
00:03 Benedict, no surprises that the King's speech got
00:06 a prolonged standing ovation from lawmakers at the French
00:11 Senate. Now one of the thing King Charles III proposed
00:15 was a new entente, a Franco-British entente to tackle
00:18 climate change. This of course comes as the government there
00:22 backpedals on pledges. Well yes and that we suddenly got
00:28 this press conference hastily arranged that was actually due
00:32 to be either today, tomorrow, you know not yesterday
00:37 afternoon, which I think Buckingham Palace will have
00:40 been slightly frustrated by because it's overshadowed both
00:44 in the news bulletins, news programs and also in some of
00:47 the coverage of the press. But of course, biodiversity,
00:51 climate change, sustainable development. These are things
00:54 that King Charles is not talking about because it's
00:57 trendy in 2023. These are things that he has for years
01:03 been talking about when he was Prince of Wales that he has
01:07 traveled about informed himself about when people made
01:12 fun of him and said, Oh yeah, gosh, you know a prince one day
01:16 going to be a king and he's talking to trees. Actually now
01:20 people whether it's here in the United Kingdom or further
01:22 afield and indeed we saw during COP26 leaders around the
01:26 world who have a lot of respect for this now king who in that
01:31 sense was quite visionary who has always believed in organic
01:35 farming that does what he can in myriad ways to try and
01:39 encourage that. So that's a very important initiative that
01:43 he is now adding to the Entente Cordiale, which of course will
01:47 have its 120th anniversary next year. I think it was the fact
01:53 that he spoke very beautifully in French as he did last night
01:57 at the Palace of Versailles will again be part of this
02:01 charm offensive, this persuasive way that he has his
02:05 his sense of humor, his very opening words asking the
02:09 parliamentarians listening to him in this beautiful French
02:13 Senate, a first for a British monarch saying and by the way
02:18 you can see some of the beautiful pageantry here as we
02:21 speak outside Buckingham Palace on today a sunny day. Very much
02:25 King Charles in his role knowing that he needs to
02:31 persuade more people and I thought it was very interesting
02:33 that throughout Pepper throughout his speech when he
02:36 talks about climate change when he talks about the G7, the G20,
02:42 the UN Security Council, the fact that the UK and France are
02:45 permanent members in the UN Security Council. Those are all
02:49 very important fundamental crucial collaboration in
02:53 defense and strategy in intelligence much needed in the
02:57 past currently and in the future, but he was then really
03:01 at pains throughout his speech to underline that it's the
03:04 peoples, the peoples of France, the peoples of the United
03:08 Kingdom who choose to live in the respective countries who
03:13 choose to visit each other or the businesses. That is what
03:17 forms the day to day month to month year to year connection
03:22 and he that was a theme last night in his toast at the
03:26 Palace of Versailles when he talked about how this is
03:29 renewed with every generation. He included he didn't just
03:34 include politics in that he referred to the cultural world,
03:37 the artists that we share between France and the United
03:40 Kingdom and of course importantly the fact that
03:42 France is hosting the Rugby World Cup and for that he used
03:47 a very interesting very short again British humor displayed
03:50 in French when he said about that and he included the fact
03:54 that his son, the heir to the throne Prince William and his
03:58 wife. So King Charles's daughter-in-law will be here
04:01 supporting as are tens of thousands of fans in France,
04:06 whether it is the Welsh team, the English team, the Northern
04:08 Ireland team that's part of the Ireland team and the English
04:11 team and then he added in French as I said with this
04:15 British humor. "Pas de coup bas et que le meilleur gagne" no low blows and may the best win.
04:21 And he got a great applause and laughter from those
04:24 parliamentarians. So a man really trying to deploy all of
04:29 that knowledge that he has accumulated both politically
04:33 with soft power and also as I said in climate change and to
04:38 try and communicate that inspiration. Also thanking
04:41 France so much for the warmth of the welcome that they've
04:44 always reserved for his late mother, the Queen. The way in
04:47 which France both President Macron and the French people in
04:52 general showed such affection and respect to the Queen
04:54 throughout her life and then upon her death and was
04:57 described indeed by President Macron as that golden thread.
05:02 So a very grateful prince, a very happy prince on his 35th
05:07 visit, official visit to France and on his first state visit. I
05:10 think he's won over not just parliamentarians with a speech
05:14 like that and that wall to wall coverage you and I were
05:16 talking about on French media will further win over other
05:20 people. I think as they get to know King Charles, not just
05:22 Prince of Wales, King Charles better.
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