Switzerland joins global condolences for Prince Philip

The Swiss President Guy Parmelin has added his voice to the growing list of countries paying respects to the British royal family following the death of Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elizabeth II.

Parmelin, who this year holds the rotating Swiss presidency role, tweeted his “sadness” at the loss of a “reassuring presence” at the age of 99 on Friday.

“My thoughts and those of the Swiss people are with Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, and her family,” he added.

The British-Swiss Chamber of Commerce expressed its condolences to the queen and her family in a post on the online platform LinkedIn.

The Duke of Edinburgh passed away at Windsor Castle following a short illness that recently saw him spend time in hospital. He came to Switzerland on official royal duty, including a visit to the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), near Geneva.

He was also a co-founder, president and patron of the World Wildlife Fund (now also known as World Wide Fund for Nature), whose global headquarters are based in Switzerland.

Born on the Greek island of Corfu in 1921, Prince Philip was the longest serving consort to a monarch in British history. He is survived by four children, eight grandchildren and ten great grandchildren.