Already an outcast within the royal family for his closeness to the late financier and sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein, Prince Andrew, brother of Charles III, is at the heart of an embarrassing new scandal for his links with a man suspected of spying for China.
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The Duke of York, 64, long described as the favorite son of the late Queen Elizabeth II, has been in the headlines of the British media for three days, with the Sunday Times deeming that he has become “the worst distraction” for King Charles III.
On Thursday, a London court validated the entry ban on the territory of a Chinese national, suspected of being engaged in “secret and deceptive activities” on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party.
Described as a “confidant” of Andrew, this 50-year-old man, identified only as “H6”, had been authorized to act on behalf of the prince with potential Chinese investors, and was even invited to his birthday in 2020.
Judges said the prince’s situation left him “vulnerable”, raising questions about his role as a non-working member of the royal family.
This affair fuels the concerns of the British authorities about the extent of the activism of Beijing, which London regularly accuses of espionage. Especially since the Sunday Times published old photographs showing “H6” alongside former Prime Ministers David Cameron and Theresa May.
Far-right party leader Nigel Farage has threatened to reveal his identity in the House of Commons, under a privilege granted to MPs.
But above all, these revelations have tarnished a little more the image of Prince Andrew, who “continues to fall into disgrace”, since he was splashed by the scandal of the Epstein affair, who died in 2019, according to The Guardian newspaper.
The prince was accused of forced sex by an American woman in 2001 when she was a minor, “on loan” from Jeffrey Epstein. He has always denied the accusations and reached a financial agreement in 2022 to avoid a resounding trial.
An interview with the BBC in 2019 to defend himself turned into a disaster. Appearing arrogant and lacking in compassion, he had not expressed a single regret for his friendship with Epstein.
Since then, he has hardly appeared in public and is the least liked member of the royal family, with 6% favorable opinions.
At the start of 2022, the Queen withdrew his military titles as well as his charitable sponsorships, a further humiliation for this former helicopter pilot, long presented as a hero of the Falklands War (1982).
Conquests and dubious relationships
A few months later, he was deprived of a balcony for the jubilee of the 70 years of reign of Elizabeth II, and in May 2023 he was relegated to the third row in Westminster Abbey for the coronation of Charles III.
Since then, the sovereign has withdrawn the role of “state advisor” which gave him the right to replace him in the event of absence or illness. And he suspended the allowance he paid to Andrew, which the prince used in particular to maintain his vast residence near Windsor Castle, according to the latest work by the famous biographer of the royal family, Robert Hardman.
Born on February 19, 1960 at Buckingham Palace, Prince Andrew is the third of four children of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. As a young man, Andrew multiplied his conquests, before marrying the flamboyant Sarah Ferguson in 1986.
The couple had two daughters, Princesses Beatrice (1988) and Eugenie (1990), but divorced in 1996.
Prince Andrew then stands out alongside scantily clad women on vacation in Thailand, or at an evening on the theme of “prostitutes and pimps” in the United States with Ghislaine Maxwell, a British socialite found guilty of sex trafficking of minors for the benefit of ‘Epstein.
After 22 years in the Navy, from 2001 to 2011 he was the United Kingdom’s special representative for international trade, but was criticized for his lavish spending at the taxpayer’s expense, and his relationships with families of dictators, including that of the Libyan Muammar Gaddafi.
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