Prince William lands in Riyadh for his three day trip to Saudi Arabia

Prince William arrived in Saudi Arabia today as he began a three-day tour of the country hours after publicly addressing the Jeffrey Epstein scandal for the first time.

The Prince of Wales stepped off a Royal Air Force jet onto a purple carpet at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh shortly after 6pm local time (3pm UK time).

Riyadh’s Deputy Governor, Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz, welcomed him into the Royal Terminal with traditional hospitality of coffee and dates.

William will later meet Saudi ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, on a trip set to be the biggest diplomatic test to date of his overseas visits in support of the UK.

The heir to the throne will hold talks with the leader – known as MBS – followed by a private dinner at his farm in a world Unesco site in the Saudi capital.

William’s arrival came hours after he and his wife Kate expressed their concern amid the ongoing revelations surrounding Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.

The reignited crisis which has engulfed both the monarchy and Westminster has shown little sign of abating since the US authorities’ dump of millions of documents associated with the paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein on January 30.

Kensington Palace said this morning that William and Kate have been ‘deeply concerned’ and their thoughts remain focused on the victims. It was the first time the views of the prince and princess have been known on the scandal.

Ahead of the visit, a palace spokesperson said: ‘I can confirm that the Prince and Princess of Wales have been deeply concerned by the continued revelations. Their thoughts remain focused on the victims.’

Prince William visited the Unesco World Heritage site At-Turaif Diriyah with Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (pictured)

The mud-brick citadel was once the seat of the Emirate of Diriyah, the First Saudi State in the 18th and 19th Centuries

Prince William arrives today at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz welcomes Prince William to Riyadh today

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz and William meet in Riyadh today

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz welcomes Prince William to Riyadh today

Kensington Palace is said to have wanted the position of the prince and princess to be known, so William could focus on the trip.

William is on a visit to the Gulf state at the request of the British Government, to strengthen ties with one of the UK’s closest Middle East allies and a major religious and political player in the region.

London and Riyadh are hopeful William and MBS, who have met before, will develop a connection – with any burgeoning relationship between the two royals likely to set the tone for Anglo-Saudi relations for decades to come.

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But the crown prince – known as MBS – is a controversial figure to the West, the head of an absolute monarchy whose regime has been accused of human rights violations, while the ruler is alleged to have links to the killing of a journalist.

The Saudi ruler’s reputation was badly damaged by a US intelligence determination that claimed he had ordered the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

A source said about the Saudis: ‘They are delighted that he’s here. The fact that he’s a prince and the future king matters enormously. They want it to be a friendship that lasts.’

Meanwhile much of the work of the Royal Family in recent weeks has been overshadowed by the ongoing Epstein scandal, despite the King’s attempts to draw a line under the matter when he banished Andrew in October by stripping him of his right to be a prince and of his dukedom.

Also today, as the King arrived at Clitheroe train station this morning to greet crowds at the start of an awayday to Lancashire, a man shouted: ‘How long have you known about Andrew?’

The rest of the crowd booed after the question was asked.

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz and William meet in Riyadh today

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz welcomes Prince William to Riyadh today

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz and William meet in Riyadh today

Prince William arrives today at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz welcomes Prince William to Riyadh today

Just hours later, Thames Valley Police confirmed it was assessing claims that Andrew shared confidential reports from his role as the UK’s trade envoy with sex offender Epstein.

Former BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt called on the King to publicly make clear that Andrew should testify before US congress over his links to Epstein, and to support removing his brother from the line of succession.

Mr Hunt said: ‘The royals are rattled and rightly so, with the statement from William and Kate failing because it contains warm words, but no hard action.

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‘It’s now time for King Charles to make clear publicly that he believes Andrew should testify before US lawmakers and that legislation needs to be passed to remove his brother as eighth in line to the throne.

‘If he doesn’t, Charles runs the risk of his reign being remembered as one where the British monarchy failed to properly support Epstein’s victims.’

Andrew, who was stripped of his titles by the King last year, has always denied any wrongdoing and last week finally left Royal Lodge for the monarch’s private Sandringham estate, with Charles personally funding his new life with an annual stipend.

The King also faced heckling on a visit to Dedham, Essex, last week when a man shouted: ‘Charles, Charles, have you pressurised the police to start investigating Andrew?’

In Clitheroe, other people wore Union flag hats to greet the King, and one brought a Corgi puppy to meet him.

The crowd cheered as Charles waved goodbye before getting into a car.

The fresh trove of documents released by the US department of justice have sparked a string of allegations against Andrew and led to police launching an investigation into Lord Peter Mandelson over alleged misconduct in public office.

Prince William and Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz touring the Unesco World Heritage site At-Turaif Diriyah

The plane carrying Prince William arrives at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh today

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz and William meet in Riyadh today

Prince William arrives today at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz and William meet in Riyadh today

A man wearing a thawb waits for the arrival of Prince William at King Khalid International Airport

Among the claims are that a second woman was sent to the UK by Epstein for a sexual encounter with Andrew, and also that the former prince and Epstein asked an exotic dancer for a threesome in the latter’s Florida home.

The latest allegation is that Andrew shared confidential reports of official visits to Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Singapore in his role as the UK’s trade envoy.

One email, dated November 2010, was forwarded by Andrew just five minutes after being sent by his then-special adviser, Amir Patel.

Another, on Christmas Eve 2010, Andrew looped Epstein in on a confidential brief on investment opportunities in the reconstruction of Helmand Province, Afghanistan.

Graham Smith, chief executive of anti-monarchy campaign group Republic, said he had reported the allegations to police.

A Thames Valley Police spokesperson said: ‘We can confirm receipt of this report and are assessing the information in line with our established procedures.’

The Duke of Edinburgh was the first royal to publicly speak out since the Epstein documents were released, saying last week that it was important to ‘remember the victims’ when asked how he was ‘coping’.

William and Kate supported the King’s decision to strip his brother Andrew of his Prince and Duke of York titles and HRH style, a move that ended his public life.

The couple also shared the sentiments of the Buckingham Palace statement at the time, which said: ‘Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse.’

In 2022, the late Queen stripped her son Andrew of his honorary military roles and he gave up using his HRH style in a dramatic fallout from the civil sex case brought by Virginia Giuffre, who died last year from suicide.

Ms Giuffre alleged she was forced to have sex three times with Andrew, which he vehemently denies, including when she was 17 and also during an orgy, after she was trafficked by Epstein.

Andrew paid millions to settle the civil sex case with her in 2022, despite insisting he had never met her.