Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, addressed the Kyiv Security Forum on 23 April during an unannounced visit to the Ukrainian capital, hromadske reports. Before taking the stage, he met Ukrainian servicemen, including defenders who had sustained serious injuries.
Harry opened his remarks by echoing his mother, Princess Diana: "I am not a politician." He framed his presence in personal rather than official terms: "I am here as a soldier who understands service. As a humanist who sees the human cost of conflict. And as a friend of Ukraine who believes the world must not grow accustomed to this war or become desensitized to its consequences."
A direct message to Moscow
Harry characterised the Russo-Ukrainian war as a "war of values, sovereignty, principles of democracy" and addressed Russian leader Vladimir Putin directly, saying "there is still a moment to stop this war."
Pressing the argument that the war benefits no one, Harry said: "No nation benefits from the deaths we are witnessing… Over the years of this war, with enormous losses and limited gains, it is becoming increasingly clear that this path offers no victory — only greater losses."
Context of the visit
Harry's arrival in Kyiv was not publicly announced in advance. The programme included meetings with military personnel and severely wounded Ukrainian defenders before his forum appearance.
British journalist Chris Ship reported Harry's arrival at Kyiv's railway station earlier the same day, where the Duke said it was "good to be back in Ukraine" and stated he wanted to remind the world "what Ukraine is having to deal with" and to support those working "every hour, every day, in incredibly difficult conditions." He was met at the station by Minister for Veterans Affairs Nataliia Kalmykova and Ramina Shut, director of the Arseniy Yatsenyuk Foundation Open Ukraine.
This is Harry's third trip to Ukraine since the full-scale invasion. He first visited Kyiv on 12 September 2025 with his Invictus Games Foundation team as part of a rehabilitation programme for wounded Ukrainian servicemen, and had earlier travelled to Lviv in April 2025.
