Prince William has made his first comments in response to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's interview with Oprah Winfrey.
During a visit to an east London school with wife Kate Middleton on Thursday morning (March 11), the Duke of Cambridge said that the royals are "very much not a racist family" in response to the allegations made by his brother and sister-in-law's comments during their interview with Oprah.
As per Sky News, when asked if he has spoken to his brother since the interview, the second-in-line to the British throne said: "No, I haven't spoken to him yet, but I will do."
During the interview with Oprah, Harry described his relationship with his brother as being one of "space" at the moment, however, he hopes that it will improve, saying "time heals all things".
He added: "You know, as I've said before, I love William to bits. He's my brother. We've been through hell together. I mean, we have a shared experience. But, you know, we’re on different paths."
Prince William's comments come after Buckingham Palace responded to the deeply personal interview with a statement on behalf of her majesty, The Queen.
The statement said that the Royal Family are "saddened" by Harry and Meghan's challenges, but say that the couple and their son will "always be much loved family members."
Per The Independent, the full statement reads:
"The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.
"The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.
"Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members."
During the interview with legendary presenter Oprah Winfrey, the couple made several headline-hitting statements regarding their time in the Royal Family, which included an allegation involving the skin color of their unborn child.
The former Suits actress told Winfrey that while she was pregnant with son Archie, concerns were raised with her husband about the skin color of their unborn baby.
She said: "In those months when I was pregnant, all around this same time, so we have in tandem the conversation of, 'You won’t be given security, not gonna be given a title' and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born."
Harry revealed that the questions were along the lines of: "What will the kids look like?"
The couple refused to divulge who expressed those concerns. When Oprah pressed Meghan to reveal who it was, she said: "I think that would be very damaging to them."
Additionally, Harry said that his father, Prince Charles, started fielding his calls after he announced his plans to step away from royal duties.
"I had three conversations with my grandmother, and two conversations with my father before he stopped taking my calls. And then he said, can you put this all in writing?"
When Winfrey asked why his father had stopped taking his calls, he replied: "By that point, I took matters into my own hands, it was like, I needed to do this for my family. This is not a surprise to anybody. It’s really sad that it’s got to this point, but I’ve got to do something for my own mental health, my wife’s and for Archie’s as well."
Harry and Charles are now in communication, but he said that there "a lot of hurt that's happened" and that they have "lots to work through. I feel really let down. He’s been through something similar, he knows what pain feels like."
