China officials ‘rude’, says Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II was caught on camera describing some Chinese officials as “very rude” in a rare diplomatic gaffe by the long-serving British monarch.

Her comments, aired on Wednesday, came just hours after British Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday also made inadvertently public remarks, referring to Afghanistan and Nigeria as “most corrupt”.

At a garden party at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday, police commander Lucy D’Orsi was introduced to the queen as the woman who oversaw security for the visit of President Xi Jinping and his wife in October 2015, to which the monarch replied: “Oh, bad luck”. The queen told D’Orsi that members of the Chinese delegation “were very rude to the ambassador” and exclaimed: “Extraordinary!”

The BBC said that the queen’s comments were blanked out on BBC World transmissions in China. The British monarch never expresses overtly political views in public and is known for her reserve and discretion.

Her husband Prince Philip on the other hand is notorious for his gaffes and off-colour jokes.

Earlier on Tuesday, Cameron was overheard at another Buckingham Palace event calling Nigeria and Afghanistan “possibly the two most corrupt countries in the world”. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said Wednesday that he did not want an apology from Prime Minister David Cameron for calling his country “fantastically corrupt”, but said Britain could return assets stolen by officials who fled to London. He noted the case of Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, a former governor detained in London on charges of money-laundering in 2005, but skipped bail by disguising himself as a woman. Alamieyeseigha, who died in October, left behind “his bank account and fixed assets, which Britain is prepared to hand over to us. This is what I’m asking for,” Mr Buhari said. “What would I do with an apology I need something tangible,” he said.