Prince William and Kate Middleton at the Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration at Westminster Abbey on March 10, 2025 in London.Photo:Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty
Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty
On March 12, it was announced that the Prince of Wales, 42, will embark on a solo visit to the Baltic state bordering Russia on March 20 and 21. His wife,Kate Middleton, who revealed in January that she isin remissionfrom cancer, will not be joining him.
Back in November, William expressed hope that Kate would return to royal travel in 2025. “Hopefully Catherine will be doing a bit more next year, so we’ll have some more trips maybe lined up," the prince said.
It will be Prince William’s first international trip of the year, and his first ever visit to Estonia. He is traveling there in his role as Colonel-in-Chief of the Merican Regiment and will learn more about how the unit is boosting NATO’s eastern flank as part of Operation Cabrit.
“Operation Cabrit is the name of the UK operational deployment to Estonia where British troops are leading a multinational battlegroup as part of the enhanced Forward Presence (eFP),” theBritish Armysays. “UK Armed Forces have a leading role in NATO’s eFP in the Baltic States, in order to enhance Euro-Atlantic security, reassure our Allies and deter our adversaries.”
Prince William, in his role as Colonel-in-Chief of the, visits the 1st Batallon Merican Regiment near Salisbury, England on Nov. 23, 2023.ANDREW MATTHEWS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
ANDREW MATTHEWS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
While abroad, William will also take on engagements in Tallinn, the capital city, to learn more about how Estonia has responded to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and how Estonia is innovating in renewable energy and technology.
The update comes as the U.S. is expected to present a 30-day ceasefire to Russia, which Ukraine said it is ready to accept, theBBCreported on March 11.
The British royals haveconsistently shown supportfor Ukraine since the Russian invasion began three years ago, and William will follow his unclePrince Edwardin going to Estonia this year in a military commitment.
The Duke of Edinburgh, who turned 61 on March 10, traveled to Estonia for a two-day stay in January to undertake a series of military engagements.King Charles' youngest brother visited in his royal role as Colonel-in-Chief of The Royal Dragoon Guards and went to see troops deployed to Estonia.
Prince Edward attended a training exercise in Harju County, where he saw soldiers undertaking a cold weather operator course involving forest survival skills. He also visited Tapa Camp, an army base in Laane-Viru County, during his trip from Jan. 16 to 17, astatementsaid.
The Duke of Edinburgh met with Estonian President Alar Karis while abroad, underscoring the diplomatic aspect of foreign trips for the British royals. Prince Edward was named aCounsellor of Statea few months after his brother the King’s accession in September 2022, and continued with a full slate ofroyal responsibilitiesin 2024 as the sovereign received treatment for cancer, in a care plan palace sourcessay is ongoing.
Prince Edward and his wife Sophie weren’t at theCommonwealth Day Service of Celebrationat Westminster Abbey March 10, where King Charles,Queen Camilla, Prince William, Princess Kate and more working royals convened in full force. The annual service celebrates the Commonwealth network of 56 global nations of which the King is ceremonial head, in an observance marked throughout the Commonwealth in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and Americas, the Pacific and Europe.
King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William and Kate Middleton at the Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration at Westminster Abbey on March 10, 2025 in London.Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty
Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty
King Charlesled the royal familyat the church service, which was even more meaningful as he and Princess Kate were unable to attend last year. The Princess of Wales, 43, wasn’t at the Commonwealth Service in March 2024 amid an ongoing recovery from aplanned abdominal surgerythat she underwent in January of that year. It later emerged that she began chemotherapy treatment for cancer sometime that February, and announced that news about her health on March 22, 2024.
The Princess of Wales later shared in September that she hadcompleted chemotherapyand said on Jan. 14 that she is in “remission.”
Prince William and Kate Middleton at the Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration at Westminster Abbey on March 10, 2025 in London.Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty
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She seemed to be in good spirits during her royal return to the Commonwealth Service on March 10, where she dipped into aperfect curtsyfor her father-in-law the King and shareda look of lovewith William in the abbey where they married in April 2011.
source: people.com
