King Charles III wanted to acknowledge victims of abuse in his joint address to Congress, including alleged survivors of Jeffrey Epstein, the palace has said.
“In both of our countries, it is the very fact of our vibrant, diverse and free societies that gives us our collective strength, including to support victims of some of the ills that, so tragically, exist in both our societies today,” the British monarch said in his speech on Capitol Hill Tuesday afternoon.
Charles fell short of acknowledging victims of specific crimes, including those who were allegedly sexually abused by Epstein. But a palace aide said it was on the king’s “mind to acknowledge victims of abuse, so they are naturally incorporated in this line.”
The king’s younger brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, has strenuously denied accusations he sexually abused one of Epstein’s most prominent accusers, Virginia Giuffre. Giuffre died by suicide about a year ago at the age of 41.
Earlier this month, Giuffre’s family strongly urged Charles to meet with them and other alleged Epstein victims during his state visit to the U.S. with Queen Camilla.
“[We] are hopeful that conversation with survivors and their families will continue to elicit decisive action from the British government against the co-conspirators of Jeffrey Epstein,” the family said in a statement to BBC Newsnight.
Andrew was mentioned 88 times in Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, Nobody’s Girl.
Giuffre first met Andrew in London when they went out for dinner, and then to a nightclub with Epstein and his long-time associate Ghislaine Maxwell, she wrote in her memoir. She was 17 years old at the time, and Andrew was 41. She claimed they had sex for the first time after their night out, writing, “He was friendly enough, but still entitled – as if he believed having sex with me was his birthright.”
During a BBC Newsnight interview in November 2019 Andrew denied that he had sex with Giuffre.
Charles formally stripped Andrew of the title of prince last November.
Andrew was arrested by British police in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office. It came after local authorities said they were assessing reports that Andrew sent trader information to the wealthy financier in 2010 when he was a British special envoy, according to the Associated Press.
The former prince was released after being held for hours. He was not charged with a crime.
Charles is the second British monarch to address Congress — his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, being the first to do so in 1991.
In his speech, Charles emphasized the importance of NATO as the military alliance is under heavy scrutiny from President Donald Trump, most recently over its refusal to get directly involved in the Iran war.
The king also acknowledged how executive power is “subject to checks and balances,” while the White House posted a photo on social media of him and Trump with the caption, “TWO KINGS.”
Charles and Camilla’s four-day state visit to celebrate 250 years of American independence kicked off Monday with a garden party at the British Embassy in Washington. On Tuesday night, Charles and Camilla are attending a state dinner hosted at the White House.
The king and queen will also make stops in New York and Virginia this week.
