[Stire] Biden mourns Queen Elizabeth II: 'A stateswoman of unmatched dignity'

[REFLX]

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and other U.S. leaders mourned the death on Thursday of Queen Elizabeth II, whose 70-year-reign spanned more than a dozen presidencies and enormous global and diplomatic change.

In a statement, Biden and first lady Jill Biden called the queen “a stateswoman of unmatched dignity and constancy who deepened the bedrock Alliance between the United Kingdom and the United States.”

The Bidens wrote, “In a world of constant change, she was a steadying presence and a source of comfort and pride for generations of Britons, including many who have never known their country without her,” and they said they “look forward to continuing a close friendship with The King and The Queen Consort.”

They later visited the British Embassy in Washington, where they took flowers and signed a condolence book.

After the embassy visit, Biden made brief remarks about the queen at a Democratic National Committee event.

“She was an incredibly gracious and decent woman,” he said.

Buckingham Palace announced that Elizabeth died Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland at age 96. She was the longest-serving British monarch.

She had met with 13 sitting U.S. presidents, dating to 1951, when President Harry S. Truman welcomed Princess Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, at Washington National Airport for a two-day stay in the nation’s capital.

Former presidents — from Jimmy Carter to Donald Trump — offered their condolences Thursday.

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