Awkward... Boris Johnson arrives in Rwanda for Commonwealth Summit, set to meet Prince Charles

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will meet with Prince Charles in Kigali on Friday on the sidelines of a meeting of Commonwealth leaders. Picture: Neil Hall/Reuters

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will meet with Prince Charles in Kigali on Friday on the sidelines of a meeting of Commonwealth leaders. Picture: Neil Hall/Reuters

Published Jun 23, 2022

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Cape Town - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was looking forward to visiting Rwanda on Thursday to help people shed their “condescending attitudes” to Rwanda, after criticism of the government's plans to deport asylum seekers to the country, a Reuters report said on Thursday.

According to reports, Johnson will meet with Prince Charles in Kigali on Friday on the sidelines of a meeting of Commonwealth leaders, after media reports the heir to the throne privately described the government's plans as ‘appalling’.

“I’ve arrived in Rwanda for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting 2022 to address global challenges, from hunger to climate change, and to turbocharge trade with some of the world’s most dynamic economies,” read a statement issued from his office.

The prime minister added that the Commonwealth is a unique and vital association joined by an invisible thread of shared values, history, institutions and language.

Earlier this year, Britain struck a £120 million ($147 million) partnership with Rwanda to deport asylum seekers to the East African country but the first such flight was halted last week by the European Court of Human Rights.

The plan has been criticised by opponents, charities, and religious leaders who say it is inhumane.

Boris Johnson has accused detractors of his Rwanda deportation policy of having “condescending attitudes“ towards the African nation, as the prime minister said he hopes to use his visit to Kigali to change minds, British media reported on Thursday.

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