Give peace a chance WILLS' PRIDE FOR POLAND

The prince shows he's not afraid to take sides on a special thank-you mission

- Judy Kean

While all eyes have been on the King to see how he’s adjusting to being monarch, his son Prince William has been determinedly going about making the role of Prince of Wales all his own.

An unannounced visit to Poland to thank the country for providing military and humanitarian support to neighbouring Ukraine since the Russian invasion shows how keen William is to use his position to be a global statesman, highlighting causes he believes in.

After details of the secretive two-day trip – during which William also thanked British troops stationed there – were revealed, a Kensington Palace spokesperson said, “It was important for the prince to travel to Poland to not only recognise the duty of our troops but to also shine a light on the ongoing humanitarian crisis. This is a continuation of the evolution of his role as a global statesman.

“We often talk about him using his global platform for the good of the environment via Earthshot [the prize founded by William to acknowledge initiatives making a diff erence to the planet]. But this is the first opportunity for him to take a visit of this kind as Prince of Wales and given that it is one of the biggest political issues facing every country on the planet, this is a demonstration of him growing as a statesman-like figure.”