It’s set to be a defining moment in King Charles’ reign if he manages to pull off his visit to the US to meet with President Donald Trump and repair the fractured relationship between the UK and the US amid the tensions of the ongoing Iran war.
But closer to home, there’s another special, high-stakes relationship that’s also in desperate need of repair – the one with his son Prince Harry and grandchildren Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
With the King and queen due in the US this week for a four-day state visit, taking in Washington DC, New York and Virginia, royal sources say Charles is forgoing seeing his son after Harry’s recent “quasi-royal” tour of Australia.
BEYOND REPAIR
Insiders say the 77-year-old monarch was “unimpressed” by the tour, which ripped up the infamous 2020 Sandringham Summit agreement. The late Queen Elizabeth deemed then there could be “no half in, half out” when Meghan and Harry quit royal life in the UK to relocate to Montecito, California, in what became known as “Megxit”.
Adding insult to injury, Charles is unhappy with a series of pointed remarks Harry, 41, made about royal life while in Oz.
During a speech at the InterEdge Summit in Melbourne, where tickets sold for up to $2400 per person, the Duke of Sussex revealed he never wanted to be a working royal, linking his reluctance to the death of his mother, Princess Diana.
“After my mum died, just before my 13th birthday, I was like, ‘I don’t want this job. I don’t want this role,’” he told the crowd. “Wherever this is headed, I don’t like it. It killed my mum, and I was very much against it.”
He also said at another Melbourne event for charity Movember that he wanted his parenting approach to be an “upgrade” on his father’s, and credited therapy with helping him to “cleanse himself of the past”.
HARRY’S ULTIMATUM
According to royal insiders, the comments rankled Charles and any planned reunion is now off the cards.
“Harry can’t wrap his head around the fact that his children’s grandfather is going to be on the same turf and he can’t take even a half-day out of his schedule to see them. It’s impossible for him not to take this personally – his heart is literally breaking for them,” the source says.
“Harry knows the stakes are high for the US and UK on this trip, but in his mind that makes it even more urgent that they see their grandad. What if the war escalates and travel becomes impossible?”
It’s been almost four years since he’s seen them – which Harry wants to change.
“He may regret it, but he told Charles that not seeing Archie and Lilibet on this trip will be a red line. It will seal the deal on the breakdown of their relationship and there won’t be any going back. It may be the last chance Charles ever gets to see them,” says the source, of Harry’s desperate move.
“Charles doesn’t take kindly to ultimatums and he’s given him more than a few. He was considering a slight detour to California after the White House dinner, but not after Harry and Meghan’s cash-grab Australian tour. He’s in the middle of peacemaking between two countries and can’t risk being dragged into their drama.”
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
