King Charles voices 'profound sorrow' over slavery in Antigua, but no apology

King Charles III has spoken of his deep personal sorrow over the transatlantic slave trade, in an address to Commonwealth leaders in St John's, Antigua and Barbuda.

Opening the 28th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting on Tuesday, the King called the trade a horror whose effects are still felt in the Caribbean and other member countries. He said history could not be undone but could be learned from, and pointed to education, jobs, trade and climate resilience as ways to tackle the damage.

He did not apologise. Buckingham Palace had said ahead of his Caribbean tour that no formal apology would be made.

Guyana's President Irfaan Ali said the monarch should now go further and apologise, while Antigua and Barbuda's Prime Minister Gaston Browne said no country should have to mortgage its future just to survive.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said last week that Britain was open to a formal apology but would not pay financial reparations, offering instead to lead debt relief for the Commonwealth's poorest nations. Many Caribbean and African countries have long pressed for repair over slavery and colonialism.