Meghan, Harry’s Ukraine Support Got a Different Reaction to William, Kate’s

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were mocked in the media for saying they stand with Ukraine—but Prince William and Kate Middleton got a very different reception.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were quick out of the blocks in expressing their solidarity on the day Russian forces shattered peace in Europe by invading Ukraine.

Harry and Meghan shared their condemnation of Vladimir Putin‘s “breach of international and humanitarian law” via their Archewell website on February 24, however, their words of support provoked derision among some.

The statement read: “Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and all of us at Archewell stand with the people of Ukraine against this breach of international and humanitarian law and encourage the global community and its leaders to do the same.”

Regular critic Piers Morgan, a columnist for The Sun and the New York Post, was among those to mock the royal couple, writing: “This will really rattle Putin.”

And Daily Mail diary editor Richard Eden posted: “It’s all over for Putin…”

The newspaper was also critical in its wider coverage with a story headlined: “Putin is shaking in his boots! Twitter users remark on Harry and Meghan’s defiant statement that they stand with the people of Ukraine.”

Prince Harry last week launched a libel lawsuit against sister title The Mail on Sunday over a story about his police protection.

The Sun also published a story online with the headline: “‘OH, WELL DONE’ Prince Harry and Meghan Markle mocked on Twitter after wading into Ukraine crisis.”

Eden, however, took a very different line in relation to Prince William in his Saturday, February 26, diary for the Mail.

He wrote: “While Prince Harry and Meghan were grandstanding about Ukraine online, Prince William was meeting a man who might actually be able to do something about it.

“I hear he held talks at Kensington Palace on Thursday with Defence Secretary Ben Wallace.

“They’re certain to have discussed Russia’s invasion, though a source says the tete-a-tete was scheduled before the crisis unfolded.”

Prince William and Kate posted their own, strikingly similar message on their official Twitter account later that day, which was two days after Harry and Meghan.

They wrote: “In October 2020 we had the privilege to meet President Zelenskyy and the First Lady to learn of their hope and optimism for Ukraine’s future.

“Today we stand with the President and all of Ukraine’s people as they bravely fight for that future W & C.”

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s statement didn’t provoke the derision seen in response to that of Harry and Meghan.

A Daily Mail headline read: “‘Today we stand with the President and all of Ukraine’: William and Kate tweet support for Kyiv in a rare political comment as Cambridges recall the ‘privilege’ of meeting President Zelensky and his wife in 2020.”

And The Sun‘s headline read: “SHOW OF SOLIDARITY Prince William and Kate Middleton ‘stand with people of Ukraine’ as they ‘fight for their future’ in Russian invasion.”