The King wore a tie depicting the Greek flag as he appeared at the COP28 climate summit following a diplomatic row over the Elgin Marbles.

The monarch, whose late father Prince Philip was born a prince of Greece, paired the accessory with a handkerchief also in blue and white – the country’s national colours – in Dubai today.

His sartorial statement comes after a row between Rishi Sunak and Athens after the prime minister cancelled a meeting with his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis over the historic marbles, also known as the Parthenon sculptures.

Downing Street said the talks had only been agreed on the basis the Greeks would not publicly lobby for the return of the ancient artefacts, on display and owned by the British Museum, during Mr Mitsotakis’s visit to the UK.

But Greece denied promising not to raise the issue on the trip.

Mr Sunak seemed not to mind the King’s clothing choice, which could be interpreted as an attempt to cool diplomatic tensions.

He posted a picture of himself with the monarch on X, formerly known as Twitter, praising him for having been “at the forefront of the fight to protect our planet” for more than 60 years.

Mr Sunak separately denied throwing a “hissy fit” by scrapping the meeting with the Greek prime minister, in reference to comments made by George Osborne, the former chancellor-turned-chairman of the British Museum.

Mr Osborne said the row would not stop long-running talks on an exchange deal to allow the Elgin Marbles to be displayed in Greece on loan.

Asked whether the former senior Tory was right, Mr Sunak told journalists: “No, no. I think I’ve said everything I’ve got to say on this in Parliament the other day and now I’m focused on delivering for people on the things they care about.”

King hopes to shift focus away from race allegations

The King will be hoping his attendance at COP28, and perhaps his tie, will shift the attention from the controversy raging at home.

Buckingham Palace is considering whether it should take action after the King and the Princess of Wales were named in the Dutch edition of a new book as the senior royals who allegedly questioned what colour skin Prince Harry and Meghan’s son would have.

Endgame author Omid Scobie has said an investigation has been launched into what the publisher has described as an “error” and insisted he never submitted a book containing the names.

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The King may simply have been paying tribute to his Greek ancestry – the late Duke of Edinburgh was born on the island of Corfu in 1921.

Philip was exiled from Greece with his family when he was just 18 months old when a military coup overthrew his uncle, King Constantine I.

On a visit to Athens in 2021 just weeks before the duke died, the now King said the country of his father’s birth had “long held the most special place in my heart”.