Can a foreign national anthem be played if their flag is not present? We have a Belgian officer being promoted and would like to play his national anthem but he does not have a flag to post (and neither do we) at the location of his promotion ceremony.
— Tammy L.
Dear Ms. L.:
I checked with my colleague at The Protocol School of Washington for the answer on this one. Diane Brown suggested the following based on her experience doing protocol at the Pentagon. I never doubt anything Diane says:
It is customary to have the flag when the national anthem is being played … but I wouldn’t hesitate playing his anthem. You could always project his flag on a screen in the background and then have the US flag displayed in the same manner for the anthem.
Tammy … I hope that helps and thank you, Diane!
– Robert Hickey www.formsofaddress.info
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