Prince Andrew broke his silence to publicly address the sex allegations made against him on Thursday in Switzerland.
Making his first appearance at the World Economic Forum since Jane Doe 3 alleged she had sex with him as a minor, the Duke of York reiterated the statements made by Buckingham Palace which "emphatically denied" his involvement.
"I wish to reiterate and reaffirm the statements already made by Buckingham Palace," Queen Elizabeth's son said. "My focus is my work."
Prior to his attendance at the forum, it was unclear if he would speak publicly about the claims even though he had been advised to confront the issue head on. The 54-year-old adhered to the suggestion and did so swiftly and clearly before continuing his speech.
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When news broke of his being named in the lawsuit against Jeffrey Epstein, Andrew was on a family vacation with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson and daughter Princess Eugenie. He returned to Britain early to figure out the next steps.
Until now, Sarah has been the one to give Andrew a voice. She said Jan. 13 on NBC’s Today, "It is defamation of character and as a great father and humongously good man in all the work he does for Britain, [I] won’t stand by and let him have his character defamed to this level."
Neither will Andrew.