Foreign relations of the Gambia 14 February 2017, The Gambia began the process of returning and formally presented its application to re-join to Secretary-General Patricia Scotland on 22 January 2018. Boris Johnson, who became the first British Foreign Secretary to visit The Gambia since the country gained independence in 1965, announced that the British government welcomed The Gambia's return to the Commonwealth. The Gambia rejoined on 8 February 2018. Foreign relations of the Gambia The Gambia followed a formal policy of non-alignment throughout most of former President Dawda Jawara's tenure. It maintained close relations with the United Kingdom, Senegal, and other African countries. The July
Queen of the Gambia Queen of the Gambia Elizabeth II was Queen of The Gambia from 1965 to 1970, when The Gambia was a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth of Nations. The Queen was also the monarch of the other Commonwealth realms, including the United Kingdom. Her constitutional roles in The Gambia were delegated to a Governor-General. The Gambia was granted independence in 1965 under the Parliament of the United Kingdom's Gambia Independence Act 1964, which unified the Gambia Colony and Protectorate into an independent sovereign state. After two referenda on constitutional amendments, the first unsuccessful because it did not pass by the necessary