Queen has 'banned' Prince Andrew from meeting Trump when he visits the UK for upcoming NATO summit
Prince Andrew has reportedly been "banned" from meeting President Donald Trump when he visits the UK next week for a NATO summit, which is expected to also be attended by heads of state and government from several other countries.
Buckingham Palace announced this past week that every senior member of the royal family available will be joining Queen Elizabeth II in welcoming NATO leaders to the summit, which will be held in London on Tuesday, December 3.
The Queen, the Prince of Wales Charles, and the Duchess of Cornwall Camilla will all be formally receiving the leaders and their partners, following which they will be joined by the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton, the Earl of Wessex Prince Edward, Princess Royal Anne, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester Prince Richard and Birgitte, and Princess Alexandra.
One name, however, was conspicuous in its absence: Prince Andrew. Andrew's name was left off the list of figures who will be meeting Trump and other world leaders after he was fired by the Queen from his royal duties.
The Queen made the decision after summoning Andrew to Buckingham Palace last week following the fall-out from his disastrous BBC interview about his friendship with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The now-infamous interview saw the Prince claim it was not possible he ever had sex with Epstein's alleged sex slave Virginia Roberts because, during their purported first encounter in 2001, he had taken his daughter Princess Beatrice to a Pizza Express in Woking for a party.
He was also criticized for not showing any sympathy towards Epstein's victims and saying he visited the multi-millionaire financier after his release from prison to tell him face-to-face that he had to break off their friendship because it was the "honorable" thing to do.
Other notable absentees for the summit are the Countess of Wessex Sophie, who has other official engagements that night, the Duke of Cambridge William, who will be in the middle east for a visit of Kuwait and Oman, and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex Harry and Meghan, who have taken a leave of absence from royal duties.