The Queen has called unspecified Chinese officials “very rude” in a video released by the Buckingham Palace on May 11.
Queen Elizabeth II made the remarks during a conversation with Metropolitan Police commander Lucy D'Orsi on the palace’s lawn on May 10.
The Queen was introduced to D'Orsi by the Earl Peel, the head of the royal household.
Peel said D'Orsi was the top commander during the Chinese state visit in October 2015 and “was seriously, seriously undermined by the Chinese, but she managed to hold her own and remain in command.”
“Oh, bad luck,” the Queen, 90, replied.
D'Orsi, encouraged by Peel to tell her story, said the visit by Xi Jinping, the leader of the Chinese communist regime, “was quite a testing time” for her.
She said that at one point unspecified members of the Chinese delegation “walked out of Lancaster House” and told her “the trip was off.”
“They were very rude to the ambassador,” the Queen said, referring to the British ambassador to China, Barbara Woodward.
“They were,” D'Orsi said. “Barbara, she was with me, and they walked out on both of us.”
“Extraordinary,” said the Queen.
“It was very rude and very undiplomatic, I thought,” D'Orsi said.
In response to the Queen’s comments, both British and Chinese officials called the visit “successful.”
At a regular press conference, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang denied knowledge of any threats to call off the visit, when asked about the incident mentioned by D'Orsi, CNN reported.
The visit was lauded by the British government as a way to bring in billions in Chinese investments, but criticized by others for neglecting human rights issues and pandering to the regime.
From a long-term perspective, the U.K.’s attitude may backfire, according to James McGregor, chairman of consultancy APCO Worldwide, Greater China, and an expert on the region.
“If you act like panting puppy the object of your attention is going to think they’ve got you on a leash. China does not respect people who suck up to them,” he told BBC in October last year.
Search results showed some 200 comments about the issue on Weibo, popular Chinese social media platform. Lot of the comments weren’t touching on the issue discussed the by Queen and instead were mocking the monarch.
User “Qi Shou Hei Bai Zi” from Shanghai wrote, “Empress Dowager Cixi, these foreigners are rude,” likening the low-key British Sovereign to an imperial concubine who usurped absolute power for herself during the late Qing dynasty in 19th century.
It is a common practice of the regime’s censors to delete comments critical of the Chinese regime and command an army of paid netizens to submit comments supportive of the regime.
