US President Donald Trump told reporters on Tuesday that he doesn’t know Britain’s Prince Andrew, despite being photographed with him on several occasions.
“I don’t know Prince Andrew, but it’s a tough story,” Trump said in London during a press appearance on the sidelines of the NATO summit. “I don’t know him, no.”
However, a number of photos show the President alongside the Duke of York during his state visit to the UK in June this year.
Trump was also photographed with Prince Andrew at his Mar-a-Lago resort in 2000 alongside first lady Melania Trump, who was Trump’s girlfriend at the time.
In June, the Duke of York tweeted from his official account about a breakfast meeting he attended with Trump during the state visit, along with several photos.
“On Day 2 of the #USStateVisit, The Duke of York & Prime Minister @TheresaMay welcome President Donald Trump @POTUS to St James’s Palace for a UK/US Senior Business Leaders Group Breakfast Meeting,” the tweet said.
Prince Andrew, who is the second eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, is at the center of a number of allegations by an American woman – who has accused the convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein of sex crimes – that she was also forced to perform sex acts with the prince.
Virginia Giuffre – previously known as Virginia Roberts – told the BBC’s “Panorama” on Monday night that when she was 17 years old she was trafficked by Epstein and forced to have sex with his friends, including the Duke of York. Giuffre also accused the prince, who has repeatedly denied the allegations, of lying about their encounter and urged the British public to back her over Andrew.
“This is not some sordid sex story,” Giuffre said. “This is a story of being trafficked, this is a story of abuse and this is a story of your guys’ royalty.”
Buckingham Palace denied her allegations in a statement to CNN on Monday.
“It is emphatically denied that The Duke of York had any form of sexual contact or relationship with Virginia Roberts. Any claim to the contrary is false and without foundation,” they said.