Prince Harry and Prince William's relationship may become "highly combustible" as several major royal events loom on the horizon, according to one commentator.
The Duke of Cambridge is preparing to take the Earthshot Prize to Boston in December in the second round of his biggest current project, which gives out £1 million awards to five innovative solutions to the climate crisis.
Before then, in September, William will be in New York to promote the 2021 prize winners, in an event which the press release notes will coincide with "NYC Climate Week and 77th Session of the UN General Assembly."
In short, Prince William will be on the same stomping ground Prince Harry has visited three times in the last year, most recently to give a keynote speech at the U.N. General Assembly on Nelson Mandela International Day.
Royal commentator Daniela Elser wrote in a column for the New Zealand Herald: "This is exactly the turf that Harry and Meghan have been trying, not particularly successfully, to carve out as their own.
"It was only last month that the duke was at the General Assembly, delivering a speech to mark Nelson Mandela Day that touched on, among other issues, the climate crisis, to an embarrassing number of empty seats."
She added: "William is now undertaking a New York climate event of his very own, and with all the opportunities to flaunt his statesman credentials, may well only inflame family tensions further.
"Whether entirely coincidental or not, this all feels like William not so much treading on his younger brother's toes but enthusiastically clog dancing over Harry's bare feet."
William's two U.S. visits are, however, not the only means by which royal relations could be strained in the coming months.
Prince Harry's memoir is expected to hit the shelves by the end of the year and is likely—at the very least—to reveal previously unknown details of the brother's shared childhood.
There has also been speculation in Britain about whether it will renew Harry and Meghan's past criticisms of the royal family or shed any further light on their allegations of racism by an unnamed royal family member.
First on the list of upcoming major royal events, however, Harry and Meghan will be back on more traditional royal turf doing the kind of jobs they did as working royals.
The couple will be in Britain for The One Young World 2022 Manchester Summit on September 5, followed by the WellChild Awards 2022 on September 8.
Sandwiched in the middle, on September 6, will be a visit to Germany to promote next year's Invictus Games Düsseldorf 2023.
Elser wrote: "Between the Sussexes descending on London, William launching himself on the US market and the mystery of Harry's book all nearly simultaneously bubbling away, are things about to reach boiling point?
"It all feels highly combustible and this is even before Harry and Meghan's 'at home' docuseries lands on Netflix, potentially before the end of the year and William and Kate travel to Boston for the second Earthshot Awards (and possibly take part in a wider tour) in November."
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told i News he did not think William and Harry would meet on the East Coast, owing to continued tension arising from the Oprah Winfrey interview, in March 2021.
He said: "William, who was openly appalled by the Sussexes interview on Oprah, is unlikely to be in contact with Harry when in New York, given how unpredictable the Sussexes have proved to be and how damaging some of their actions have been to the royal family."
Geography will also make a face-to-face meeting unlikely as Harry and Meghan live on the West Coast, in Montecito.
For Prince William, the U.S. visits may give him the opportunity to appear statesman-like on a major stage in his brother's stomping ground, however, there is a level of risk for him too.
Earthshot itself is in December and publisher Penguin Random House will likely want to get Harry's memoir out in time for Christmas.
That creates the prospect Prince William may find himself on tour in America with his biggest project of the year overshadowed by a new wave of royal bombshells and in an environment that he may find is naturally more sympathetic than Britain toward the Sussexes.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jack Royston is Newsweek's Chief Royal Correspondent based in London, U.K. He reports on the British royal family—including King Charles ... Read more
