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State Visit to the Baltic countries: UpdateThe official programme of engagements for the State Visit by Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II to the Baltic States of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia has been published by the Foreign and Commonwealth of Office. --------------------------------------- Queen Elizabeth II accompanied by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh will depart for Vilnius, the capital city of Lithuania on Monday, 16 October 2006. Official engagements in Lithuania will begin after the official welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace has taken place the following day. After the welcoming ceremony, The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will visit the Antakalnio Cemetery where they will lay a wreath. A visit to Lithuania’s parliament in planned, while there, Her Majesty the Queen will make a speech as well as meet several members of parliament and signatories of 1990 Declaration of Independence. Other engagements include a visit to the Vilnius University and a solo engagement by the Duke of Edinburgh to the Vilnius University Botanical Garden and the British Council in Lithuania. In the evening the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend a State Banquet hosted by the President of Lithuania in honour of Her Majesty. ------------------------------------ The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will be welcomed to Latvia by the President Vike-Freiberga of Latvia at Riga Castle where the official welcoming ceremony will be held. The House of the Blackheads, one of the recently restored architectural treasures of the city will take centre stage on this visit, as the State Lunch will be hosted here in honour of the Queen. A walkabout is planned for after the lunch. The Royal entourage will then visit St Saviour's Anglican Church where they will meet members of the Latvian armed forces who have served both in Afghanistan and Iraq, and church volunteers. Other engagements include a reception for the British and Latvian community and a visit to the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia as well as a walkabout with the President of Latvia the next day. The Royal entourage will then travel to Estonia for the final part of their State Visit to the Baltic States. ------------------------------------- The Estonian Presidential Palace will play host to the always important official welcoming ceremony in the Estonian capital, Tallinn. The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will be greeted upon arrival by the Estonian President and several senior political figures. In the afternoon, the Duke of Edinburgh will visit the British Estonian Chamber of Commerce. The Queen joined by the Duke of Edinburgh will later in the day attend a concert and reception at the KUMU Foyer and Grand Hall. President Ruutel of Estonia will host a State Banquet in honour of Her Majesty the Queen later in the evening. On the second day of the visit to Estonia, the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will undertake several engagements relating to the British naval role in the Estonia. The first engagement of the day will be to attend a service to commemorate the Royal Navy's role in Estonia's Independence. Later in the day the Queen will visit HMS Liverpool where she will host a reception for British and Estonian forces. Her Majesty will then greet several members of the Estonian forces who are to be deployed to Afghanistan. On a solo engagement, the Duke of Edinburgh will present a wreath to commemorate British Naval personnel. Click Here to visit the Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip forum. |
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