LONDON – In keeping with tradition and royal protocol, Ambassador Antonio Manuel R. Lagdameo formalized his assumption of duties as envoy to the Court of St. James’s by presenting his letter of credence to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace.

Ambassador Lagdameo and his wife, Madame Maria Linda F. Lagdameo, were received by The Queen in a private audience where they exchanged views on the long history of friendship and cooperation between the peoples of the Philippines and the United Kingdom.

The members of the Ambassador’s retinue, Deputy Chief of Mission Gilberto B. Asuque, Consul General Senen T. Mangalile, Minister Myla Grace Ragenia C. Macahilig, and First Secretary Kristine Leilanie R. Salle were presented to Her Majesty by Ambassador Lagdameo.

As part of the royal pageantry surrounding the ceremony, the Ambassador and his entourage were conveyed from his official residence in Belgravia to Buckingham Palace by Mr. Alistair Harrison, Marshal of the Diplomatic Corps, aboard two state landaus, or horse-drawn carriages, from the Royal Mews. They were escorted by a royal limousine and mounted elements and motorcycle riders of the Metropolitan Police as they processed through the Palace gates, witnessed by throngs of people massed around the Queen Victoria Memorial.

After the Palace ceremony, Ambassador Lagdameo hosted a vin d’honneur at Haymarket Hotel on Suffolk Place for officials of the UK Government, members of Parliament, ambassadors and high commissioners of ASEAN and neighboring countries, and select representatives of the business sector and the Filipino-British community.

Mr. Julian Evans, Vice-Marshal of the Diplomatic Corps, offered a toast to President Rodrigo Duterte and recalled that Ambassador Lagdameo has been through this ceremony before. The ambassador has the rare privilege of having presented credentials to The Queen twice, having been assigned to London as Ambassador from 2009 to 2010.

In his reply, Ambassador Lagdameo offered a toast to Her Majesty and broadly outlined his plan to further enhance bilateral relations between the two countries. “The Joint Plan of Action between the Philippines and the UK gives us a robust template for further deepening our political, economic and cultural relations, and we intend to harness that,” he added. END

 Ambassador and Mrs. Lagdameo, accompanied by Vice-Marshal Julian Evans, depart Buckingham Palace aboard a state landau after presenting his credentials to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

  The Ambassador and his entourage are welcomed by well-wishers upon arrival at Haymarket Hotel where a vin d’honneur was held to mark the occasion.

 Ambassador Lagdameo offers a toast to Her Majesty The Queen.

Mr. Julian Evans, Vice-Marshal of the Diplomatic Corps offers a toast to President Rodrigo Duterte.

UK Government, members of Parliament, Ambassadors and High Commissioners of ASEAN, and select members of the business and Filipino-British communities offer their best wishes to the Ambassador.

Ambassador and Mrs. Lagdameo welcome the Ambassador of Laos, His Excellency Sayakane Sisouvong, current Chair of the ASEAN London Committee, to the vin d’honneur, as DCM Gilberto Asuque looks on.