Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, made a surprise visit to Kyiv on September 12, 2025, in a move that has drawn international attention and underscored the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. Arriving by train early Friday morning, Harry was greeted at the station by Olha Rudnieva, founder and CEO of the Superhumans Trauma Centre in Lviv, who welcomed him with a traditional Ukrainian podstakannik—a silver holder for a glass of tea, a symbolic gesture for travelers on overnight trains across the country, according to BBC.
The Duke’s visit was not a solo endeavor. He was accompanied by a team from his Invictus Games Foundation, the organization he established in 2014 to support wounded veterans through sports. This trip, however, marked his first time in the Ukrainian capital, having previously toured the Superhumans Center in Lviv back in April. As reported by Sky News and The Guardian, Harry’s mission was clear: to do “everything possible” to help the recovery of military personnel and civilians seriously injured in the ongoing war with Russia.
"We cannot stop the war, but what we can do is do everything we can to help the recovery process," Harry told The Guardian while traveling overnight to Kyiv. "We can continue to humanise the people involved in this war and what they are going through. We have to keep it in the forefront of people’s minds. I hope this trip will help to bring it home to people because it’s easy to become desensitised to what has been going on."
The invitation for Harry’s visit came directly from the Ukrainian government, but it was a chance meeting with Rudnieva in New York that set the wheels in motion. As Harry recounted, “I bumped into Olga in New York. It was a chance meeting, and I asked her what I could do to help. She said, ‘The biggest impact you have is coming to Kyiv.’ I had to check with my wife and the British government to make sure it was OK. Then the official invitation came.”
Ukraine’s need for international support is stark. The European Disability Forum estimates that as of February 2025, approximately 300,000 people have been left disabled as a result of the war. The country is grappling with tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians who have suffered amputations, though the government does not publish precise military casualty figures. The Superhumans Center in Lviv, which Harry previously visited, has become a beacon for those seeking prosthetic limbs and rehabilitation, and the opening of a new prosthetics center called “Human Titans” in Kyiv, announced by Mayor Vitali Klitschko, marks another step in addressing these needs, as noted by United24 Media.
Harry’s schedule in Kyiv was kept under wraps for security reasons, but media outlets including The Independent and The Guardian reported that he planned to visit the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War, meet with Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, and spend time with approximately 200 veterans. He was also expected to outline new initiatives from the Invictus Games Foundation aimed at expanding support for wounded personnel throughout Ukraine. Natalia Kalmykova, Ukraine’s veterans minister, emphasized the significance of these efforts: “It’s thanks to our relationship with the Invictus Games Foundation that we established, and continue to develop, the role of sports in recovery in Ukraine and why it’s included in the veteran policy strategy.”
The Invictus Games have held special meaning for Ukraine since the country first competed in 2017. Their participation took on new urgency after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. Recalling the 2022 Games in The Hague, Harry reflected, “It was remarkable. Every one of the participants had a journey to get to those games, but nobody from any of the other competing nations was going back to war. That is why the Ukrainians stood out. Everyone felt an immense connection to them. Some of the competitors were being pulled off the battlefield and were going back to the battlefield. It means so much to us, because it means so much to them.”
Harry’s visit came at a time of heightened tension in the region. On the same day, the UK’s new Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper, also traveled to Kyiv—her first foreign trip since taking office. Her arrival coincided with the UK’s announcement of new sanctions targeting Russian oil shipments and suppliers of electronics, chemicals, and explosives used in Russian weapons, as reported by Sky News. Meanwhile, Russia and Belarus launched the Zapad-2025 joint military exercises near NATO’s borders, and Russian defense systems claimed to have intercepted and destroyed 221 Ukrainian drones overnight, including nine over the Moscow region. The backdrop was further complicated by recent Russian drone incursions into Polish airspace and the largest aerial attack on Ukraine since the war began, which struck a key government building in Kyiv.
Beyond his work in Ukraine, Harry’s trip followed a four-day stay in the UK, where he reunited with King Charles for the first time in 19 months. Their private tea at Clarence House lasted just 54 minutes, but it was a significant moment in a family relationship that has been under strain since Harry and Meghan Markle stepped back from royal duties and moved to California in March 2020. The Duke remains estranged from his brother, the Prince of Wales, with no meeting taking place during his UK visit, according to The Independent.
Harry’s commitment to humanitarian causes was further highlighted by the Archewell Foundation’s announcement on September 10, 2025, of a $500,000 donation to projects supporting injured children from Ukraine and Gaza. The grants will assist the World Health Organization with medical evacuations and help fund prosthetic development for young people affected by war, as detailed by BBC and The Independent. The announcement coincided with Harry’s visit to the Centre for Blast Injury Studies at Imperial College London, where he learned about work focusing on injuries suffered by children and those sustained in disasters.
Throughout his time in Kyiv, Harry sought to keep the world’s attention on the human stories behind the headlines. “In Lviv, you don’t see much of the war. This is the first time we will see the real destruction of the war,” he remarked, underscoring the emotional toll of witnessing the devastation firsthand. His presence offered not just moral support but a tangible reminder of the importance of international solidarity and the ongoing struggle faced by Ukraine’s wounded and disabled.
As the war grinds on into its third year, Harry’s visit has shone a renewed spotlight on the resilience of Ukraine’s veterans and civilians, the urgent need for rehabilitation and support, and the power of global attention to drive meaningful change—even in the darkest of times.