King Charles III opened a new welcome centre for Ukrainian refugees in London on Wednesday.
The monarch, 74, toured the venue,at the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of the Holy Family in Exile, with Ukraine’s first lady Olena Zelenska.
On his second visit to the cathedral since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February, the king was given a traditional Ukrainian welcome of bread and salt before being invited to meet staff, volunteers and refugees.
Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski, head of the cathedral, told The National that the joint visit had given an “incredible morale boost” to those who fled the invasion and were establishing new lives in the UK.
He said Mrs Zelenska's appearance at the centre also showed refugees “they have not been forgotten” by those in their homeland.
“This was the second visit of his majesty to our cathedral since the full-scale invasion and it has shown us how much we mean to the royal family,” the bishop said.
He said Ukrainians had taken the opportunity to thank the king for “the openness and the kindness” shown by the people of Britain.
The Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of the Holy Family in London and the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain work together to offer assistance to refugees fleeing the war at the centre.
Vadym Prystaiko, Ukraine’s UK ambassador, was among those who met the king and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's wife during the visit.
Bishop Nowakowski showed King Charles a religious icon painted on an ammunition box that had come to the cathedral from Ukraine.
The head of Britain's royal family was also shown how Ukrainians are benefiting from English language classes, art therapy and a mother and toddlers' club.
Khrystyna Kazarian, who volunteers at the welcome centre, said the king showed great interest in the work being done.
She told the PA news agency that her daughter tried to jump on the monarch when he approached her for a chat.
“He asked what we are doing now,” she said. “My daughter actually tried to jump on him several times.
“He said, 'I can’t imagine how you are doing this’.”
“He was very nice and warm,” she added.
Mrs Zelenska also toured the centre, speaking to attendees and volunteers.
After circling the room, King Charles was brought to the front to unveil a plaque commemorating the opening.
Bishop Nowakowski thanked him for his support.
“Your majesty, I have the great pleasure of welcoming you to our Ukrainian Welcome Centre,” he said.
“I also want to express my gratitude to you, sir, for being here right after the invasion of Ukraine in the first days of March, with her majesty the Queen Consort.
“This really inspired us, this really gave us a lot of assistance.”
He said he hoped that the next time the king visited would be after Ukraine had won the war.
King Charles unveiled the plaque, which read: “To commemorate the official opening of the Ukrainian Welcome Centre by His Majesty King Charles III.”
He then wished the attendees a Happy Christmas in Ukrainian.
Bishop Nowakowski also presented the king with a gift — a framed photograph of him dancing the traditional Ukrainian Hopak dance in 1981 with a group of folk dancers in Derby.
“We have a picture that has become famous worldwide,” the bishop told the king. “I have to say that throughout the Ukrainian diaspora this is one of our most cherished pictures and I would like you to have it.”
The monarch responded by bursting into laughter and graciously accepting the present.
Ukraine war latest — in pictures
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Analysis
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How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
Personalities on the Plate: The Lives and Minds of Animals We Eat
Barbara J King, University of Chicago Press
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
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Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
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World Cup warm-up fixtures
Friday, May 24:
- Pakistan v Afghanistan (Bristol)
- Sri Lanka v South Africa (Cardiff)
Saturday, May 25
- England v Australia (Southampton)
- India v New Zealand (The Oval, London)
Sunday, May 26
- South Africa v West Indies (Bristol)
- Pakistan v Bangladesh (Cardiff)
Monday, May 27
- Australia v Sri Lanka (Southampton)
- England v Afghanistan (The Oval, London)
Tuesday, May 28
- West Indies v New Zealand (Bristol)
- Bangladesh v India (Cardiff)
FIGHT INFO
Men’s 60kg Round 1:
Ahmad Shuja Jamal (AFG) beat Krisada Takhiankliang (THA) - points
Hyan Aljmyah (SYR) beat Akram Alyminee (YEM) - retired Round 1
Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) beat Bhanu Pratap Pandit (IND) - TKO Round 1
Men’s 71kg Round 1:
Seyed Kaveh Soleyman (IRI) beat Abedel Rahman (JOR) - RSC round 3.
Amine Al Moatassime (UAE) walk over Ritiz Puri (NEP)
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Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
The Intruder
Director: Deon Taylor
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Michael Ealy, Meagan Good
One star
PREMIER LEAGUE RESULTS
Bournemouth 1 Manchester City 2
Watford 0 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
Newcastle United 3 West Ham United 0
Huddersfield Town 0 Southampton 0
Crystal Palace 0 Swansea City 2
Manchester United 2 Leicester City 0
West Bromwich Albion 1 Stoke City 1
Chelsea 2 Everton 0
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Burnley 1
Liverpool 4 Arsenal 0
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)
Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)
West Ham v Wolves (8.30pm)
Bournemouth v Crystal Palace (10.45pm)
Sunday
Newcastle United v Sheffield United (5pm)
Aston Villa v Chelsea (7.15pm)
Everton v Liverpool (10pm)
Monday
Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)
