Prince Harry openly discussed Megxit, life in the Royal
Family and Donald Trump in
a hoax phone call as two Russian men duped him into thinking they were Greta
Thunberg and her dad.
It was an embarrassing blow for the Duke of Sussex, 35, who,
along with wife Meghan Markle and
baby son Archie, will officially quit their roles as senior royals at the end
of March.
In an astonishing recording, Harry spoke to the fake Greta
about his uncle Prince Andrew, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, his frequent flying, his belief that the world
is run "by some very sick people" and his battle with the media.
He was tricked by notorious Russian pranksters Vladimir
Kuznetsov and Alexey Stolyarov, who are reported to have called Harry on New
Year's Eve and January 22 while the Sussexes were staying in Canada.
Kuznetsov and Stolyarov posted the recording on social
media, providing more embarrassing headlines for a Royal Family in crisis.
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They posed as Swedish climate change activist Greta, 17, and
her father Svante, the Sun reported.
The hoaxers' previous victims include music legend Elton
John and US Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
The calls involving Harry emerged after he and Meghan
attended their final royal engagement - Monday's Commonwealth Day service at
Westminster Abbey in central London.
The duke opened up to the fake Greta about his reasons for
quitting senior royal life, saying he is withdrawing to "protect my
son".
He told the Russians: “It’s, that’s probably a conversation
for another time, there’s lots of layers to it and lots of pieces to the
puzzle.
“But sometimes the right decision isn’t always the easy one.
“And this decision certainly wasn’t the easy one but it was
the right decision for our family, the right decision to be able to protect my
son.
Harry was also pressed for his opinion on Donald Trump.
During one call, he said: "I think the mere fact that
Donald Trump is pushing the coal industry is so big in America, he has blood on
his hands."
'Greta' told the duke that the US President had run away
from her, referring to the time Trump refused to be pictured with the real
activist.
Harry told 'Greta': “What a surprise."
He told the 'teen' that she would "outsmart" Trump
in a conversation about climate change, but she should always meet him when the
opportunity presents itself.
Harry, who met Trump at an event in London after the
president called Meghan "nasty", said: “Whether you have an option to
meet President Trump or an option to meet Boris Johnson, I think I would always."