Meghan Markle and Prince Harry continue Princess Diana’s legacy with donation to Ukraine

Duke and Duchess of Sussex have donated to a number of organisations supporting Ukraine, including one close to Princess Diana’s heart

(Getty Images)

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are continuing to support the people of Ukraine through their non-profit Archewell Foundation.

The foundation announced on 18 March that the couple have made donations to a number of organisations providing relief on the ground in Ukraine, including HIAS, the HALO Trust, World Central Kitchen, and the World Health Organisation. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also said that they are supporting a coalition of Ukrainian media such as The Kyiv Independent.

Among the many charities is the HALO Trust, which trains and employs the residents of war-torn communities throughout the world to remove landmines and dangerous explosives. Prince Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, worked closely with the organisation in 1997 when she walked through one of HALO’s minefields in Angola. Prince Harry has continued her work as a patron of the trust and visited Angola in 2019 where he recreated his mother’s famous photo.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were the first royal family members to make a statement on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. On 24 February, the couple condemned the actions of Russia in a statement shared on the Archewell Foundation website, writing that they “stand with the people of Ukraine” and that world leaders should do the same.

“Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and all of us at Archewell stand with the people of Ukraine against this breach of international and humanitarian law and encourage the global community and its leaders to do the same,” they announced in the statement.

The couple took a stand against injustice when they accepted the President’s Award at the NAACP Image Awards last February. The prestigious accolade recognises “special achievement and distinguished public service”.

“We share a commitment to a life of service, a responsibility to confront injustice and a belief that the most overlooked are often the most important to listen to,” Prince Harry said during the acceptance speech.

Meghan added: “I couldn’t be prouder that we’re doing this work together.”