Joe Biden to skip King Charles's coronation

No US president has ever attended the crowning of a British monarch

US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrive for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey on September 19, 2022. The first lady will attend the coronation of King Charles III.Show more

US President Joe Biden will not attend King Charles III's coronation — instead, first lady Jill Biden will be in attendance at the Westminster Abbey ceremony.

The White House unveiled the plans in a readout of a call between Mr Biden and King Charles to underscore the friendly relationship between the two countries.

“The President congratulated the king on his coming coronation and informed him that first lady Jill Biden looks forward to attending on behalf of the United States,” the White House said in the readout.

“The President also conveyed his desire to meet the king in the United Kingdom at a future date.”

No US president has ever attended a British monarch's coronation.

Invitations for the coronation were revealed by Buckingham Palace on Tuesday. About 2,000 guests were invited to attend the May 6 event.

Mr Biden will travel to the Ireland and Northern Ireland next week to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement that ended years of conflict.

He will first travel to Belfast between April 11-12 to commemorate the progress made since the agreement and underscore US support for Northern Ireland's economic potential.

From there, he will travel Ireland and deliver an address celebrating ties between the US and Ireland.

Bloomberg contributed to this report