Prince William reveals he spent three weeks undercover with UK spy agencies: 'A humbling experience'
The Duke of Cambridge Prince William recently revealed that he successfully completed three weeks immersing himself in the world of espionage after he took part in assignments with the Secret Intelligent Services (SIS), also known as the MI6.
The royal's attachment to the United Kingdom’s Security and Intelligence Agencies, the SIS, the Security Service and GCHQ ended this weekend, something that the royal's office announced in a press statement on Saturday, reported People.
Now that the threat level for international terrorism in the UK has been set at somewhat "severe" or above for the last five years, William was “keen to see first-hand the extraordinary work that staff across the Security and Intelligence Agencies do,” his office at Kensington Palace said.
“Spending time inside our security and intelligence agencies, understanding more about the vital contribution they make to our national security, was a truly humbling experience,” William said. “These agencies are full of people from everyday backgrounds doing the most extraordinary work to keep us safe,” he added.
These officers usually have to work in secret, and there are quite a lot of times when these people are unable to tell their family and friends about the work they do or the stresses they face. William expressed his admiration for the service and saying "they are driven by an unrivaled patriotism and dedication to upholding the values of this country." “We all owe them deep gratitude for the difficult and dangerous work they do," he said.
Prince William's assignment began with officers who work secretly overseas, developing foreign contacts and gathering intelligence that helps to make the UK safer. During his time with these officials, William was shown how SIS helps the UK identify and navigate risks to its national security, military effectiveness, and economy from anywhere around the globe. The Prince spent the second week of his assignment with the MI5, also known as the Security Service, where the royal worked with counter-terrorism teams to understand better how they conduct their investigations, including understanding the role of analysis and surveillance.
The last one week saw the father-of-three attached to GCHQ in Cheltenham (which is sometimes known as the U.K.’s listening post) where he spent time with the experts using cutting-edge technology, technical ingenuity and wide-ranging partnerships to identify, analyze and disrupt threats.
In the official statement from Kensington Palace, David, GCHQ Head of Counter-Terrorism Operations, was all praises for Prince William for working “exceptionally hard to embed himself in the team and comfortably held his own amongst some highly skilled analysts and operators.” He added, “His Royal Highness asked some probing questions and demonstrated a real grasp of our mission. This was a rare opportunity to expose, in detail, the technical ingenuity and problem-solving skills needed on a daily basis to help keep the UK safe.”