John Kerry knighted in England by King Charles

Politics

The diplomat, who served as Biden’s climate envoy, was bestowed the award for “services to tackling climate change.”

Former US Secretary of State John Kerry was knighted Wednesday by King Charles III, receiving England’s highest honor in a closed-door reception at Buckingham Palace.

Kerry, 81, was formally awarded the Knight Commander award of the Order of St. Michael and St. George, which is typically bestowed to recognize foreign diplomats and is the highest honor that a noncitizen of the United Kingdom can receive. The former Massachusetts senator received the honor for “services to tackling climate change.”

During the Biden administration, Kerry served as the US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and pushed countries to phase out fossil fuels. In an interview with The Boston Globe, he criticized President Trump’s attacks on climate change and green energy initiatives.

Kerry has long been a proponent of climate change legislation, and fought back against Trump’s dismissal of such action during his first term as president. He told the Globe that he and King Charles are both committed to forming clean energy infrastructure and cutting carbon emissions.

“King Charles and I share the same point of view — that there’s an urgency to doing things,” Kerry told the Globe Wednesday. “He’s been ahead of most folks on this from the time I can remember… He always had a commitment to nature.”

Though Kerry received the honor, he will not be bestowed the title of “sir” because he is not British. However, it’s not uncommon for US citizens to receive the English honor, as during Queen Elizabeth II’s tenure, she awarded 27 Americans with knighthood.