Prince William has come under fire for comments he made on the war in Ukraine, calling the concept of war in Europe “alien” and “unfathomable,” after a now-rescinded report surfaced that the prince compared the conflict to those in Africa and Asia.
In a recent visit to the Ukrainian Cultural Centre in London, which was recorded and uploaded to The Royal Family Channel on YouTube, the pair took photos with and joined Ukraine’s Ambassador Vadym Prystaiko and his wife.
In footage posted to Twitter that was not included in the YouTube video of the meeting, a person appearing to be William can be heard saying, “Everyone is horrified by what they are seeing. It’s really horrifying. The news every day, it’s just, it’s almost unfathomable.”
There has been lots of reporting about Prince William’s words about #Ukraine️ during a visit yesterday.
Our camera was there so in the interests of fact and accuracy (important things), here is what he said.
Transcript in the thread below ? pic.twitter.com/2fGlgFCDtB— Chris Ship (@chrisshipitv) March 10, 2022
“For our generation, it’s very alien to see this in Europe. We’re all right behind you. We’re thinking about you. We feel so useless.”
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According to some reports, the prince was allegedly drawing a comparison between conflicts in Africa and Asia and those in Europe, but this has not been confirmed. A representative for the Press Association reportedly said the Duke of Cambridge’s quote was paraphrased by a reporter who had not heard it firsthand. A report that he was making a comparison to Africa and Asia was rescinded by the outlet, and a correction was issued to subscribers.
“The Duke of Cambridge on war in Europe. He doesn’t appear to have compared it to conflicts in Africa and Asia. In the chaos, a remark he made was misheard, starting a social media storm. Apologies for reporting that online,” royal correspondent Richard Palmer tweeted.
The Duke of Cambridge on war in Europe. He doesn’t appear to have compared it to conflicts in Africa and Asia. In the chaos, a remark he made was misheard, starting a social media storm. Apologies for reporting that online. https://t.co/zdfaCJFFLf
— Richard Palmer (@RoyalReporter) March 10, 2022
However, the damage had already been done. #PrinceWilliamisaRacist began trending on Twitter, with users claiming this wasn’t the first incident.
“Prince William’s racist remark is unfortunately not the only one made by the West. Sections of western media are covering Russia-Ukraine with deeply-rooted discrimination,” journalist Priyanka Deo Jain tweeted Thursday.
Prince William’s racist remark is unfortunately not the only one made by the West. Sections of western media are covering Russia-Ukraine with deeply-rooted discrimination.
What’s worrying is NO action is being taken on such bigoted views.
Full: https://t.co/FFcVJ2uroo pic.twitter.com/8tVMQWJdt0— Priyanka Deo Jain (@priyankadeo) March 10, 2022
“The more royal reporters try to clean up prince William’s mess, the more #princewilliamisaracist trends,” one user said of the media’s back-and-forth reporting.
The more royal reporters try to clean up prince William’s mess, the more #princewilliamisaracist trends? pic.twitter.com/5l9WqYpsCX
— D.B.? (@DBrown99944) March 10, 2022
“How can you mishear Africa and Asia . And what did bilson say that made him hear African and Asia? They are so bad that even their so called ‘explanation’ makes them look bad #PrinceWilliamisaracist,” another user wrote.
How can you mishear Africa and Asia . And what did bilson say that made him hear African and Asia? They are so bad that even their so called “explanation ” makes them look bad #PrinceWilliamisaracist pic.twitter.com/MLlkuhHC3v
— Bridget (@MaameAgyeiwaa36) March 10, 2022
Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.’s youngest daughter, Bernice King, tweeted, “I believe that we have a great deal of work to do globally to eradicate what my father called the Triple Evils of Militarism, Racism and Poverty.”
“I believe that language matters in that work. And that it is harmful for a global figure to express war as ‘alien to Europe,'” she added, which is assumed to be in reference to comments from the prince.
I believe that we have a great deal of work to do globally to eradicate what my father called the Triple Evils of Militarism, Racism and Poverty.
I believe that language matters in that work. And that it is harmful for a global figure to express war as “alien to Europe.”
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) March 10, 2022
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A representative for the Duke of Cambridge told the Washington Examiner that there were no further comments to add regarding the reports.
