Shropshire Star

The countries of the world still awaiting a royal visit

Large parts of the world have paid host to the British royal family.

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Flags are flown from the cockpit as the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall arrive at Jose Marti International Airport in Havana, Cuba

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall became the first representatives of the British royal family to visit Cuba when their plane touched down in Havana.

Charles and Camilla’s groundbreaking trip is likely to usher in a new chapter in the relationship between the UK and the Communist state once ruled by Fidel Castro.

The Queen is, unsurprisingly, the most well-travelled of the royal family, having paid official visits to more than 100 countries during her time on the throne.

Royalty – Queen Tour of Kenya – Nairobi
Queen Elizabeth II during a state visit to Kenya (Ron Bell/PA)

Her reign began on foreign soil after her father George VI died while she was staying in Kenya.

There are a number of countries and territories which the Queen has not visited, including some former members of the Soviet Bloc.

In contrast, vast swathes of the South Pacific have been covered by royal visits from the Queen such as Nauru, Kiribati, Tuvalu and Fiji on board the Royal Yacht Britannia.

Royalty – Queen Tour of Australia and South Pacific – Kiribati
Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh watching dancers in Kiribati (PA)

Royal visits to South America have been rare – possibly due to the reach of Britain’s empire not extending beyond British Guiana and the Falkland Islands.

The Queen visited Brazil and Chile in 1968 and Guyana in 1994.

Closer to home, and the changing face of Europe over the last 30 years has meant there are newer countries which have not been visited.

Duke of Cambridge Middle East tour Day 4
The Duke of Cambridge meets Palestinian Authority Deputy Prime Minister, Ziad Abu-Amr, in Ramallah (Joe Giddens/PA)

Albania and Belarus are still to be visited, while the Queen took in Belgrade, Dubrovnik, and Zagreb when it was part of Yugoslavia in 1974.

Many Commonwealth members have received the British head of state or a representative, but many other African countries have not, including Mali in the west and Djibouti in the east.

A number of Asian countries are also awaiting their first glimpse of British royalty, including North Korea.

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