At first sight, the Duke of Sussex is on his way back. He is carving out a role for himself as an international humanitarian and signalling his intention to speak out increasingly on issues facing Britain.
After his team met one of the King’s senior aides 10 months ago in what was labelled a “secret summit”, their two offices are liaising to inform each other about major plans and seeking to avoid diary clashes where possible. Relations ebb and flow amid ongoing tensions, but the lines of communication remain open.
Increasingly, the King and Prince Harry, who also asked to be updated on his father’s health as part of the July 2025 courtesy agreement, seem to be speaking with the same voice. On Thursday, they both showed their support for Britain’s Jewish community after attacks in London.
Last weekend, alongside Prince William, they both paid 100th birthday tributes to Sir David Attenborough and his tireless environmentalism. In Ukraine in April, a week before the King’s state visit to the US, the Duke of Sussex appeared to foreshadow one of his father’s key messages to Donald Trump about the need for American support to resist Russian aggression. That came almost straight after he and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, went on a quasi-royal visit to Australia.
