King Charles' blunt four-word reply to Prince Harry's request as 'calls go unanswered'

Prince Harry has made many trips back to the UK since he and wife Meghan Markle relocated to the US. The 40-year-old's latest visit was just weeks ago when he returned to Britain for a charity event.

But the last visit which he is thought to have seen his father King Charles face-to-face is understood to have been several months earlier. Harry met with Charles shortly after the monarch announced he had been diagnosed with cancer.

Due to the last-minute nature of the visit, Charles was only able to see his youngest son in London for less than an hour before heading back to Sandringham. The next trip Harry made to the UK was several months later in May.

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The dad-of-two was at a special service at St Paul's Cathedral to mark 10 years of his Invictus Games, Mirror reports. Sources claimed that Harry had asked for a meeting with the King before his trip.

But his request was said to have been met with a simple four-word response. Charles reportedly said he would see his son 'if he is able'.

A source said: "Harry has kept in regular contact with his father on several occasions and made no secret of his desire to see him when he can. He has been especially concerned about him and hopes the King will be well and able to see him as planned."

But it turned out that the father and son did not meet up on this occasion. The move raised eyebrows among royal fans who speculated that Charles was too busy to see Harry.

Reports later claimed the King had offered his son a place to stay in a royal residence. But s ources close to the Sussexes said Harry's calls to his dad were unanswered as he tried to discuss his security arrangements.

The Duke has been embroiled in a long-running battle over his security when he is in the UK. He lost the right to his police protection when he stepped down as a working royal.

He lost his subsequent court battles to have it reinstated for him, wife Meghan and their two children - and is understood to be planning an appeal. According to PEOPLE magazine, Harry believes his dad could have helped reinstate his security.

But this has been dismissed as 'wholly inaccurate' by a palace source. A friend of Harry's told the magazine: "He gets 'unavailable right now'. His calls go unanswered.

"He has tried to reach out about the King's health, but those calls go unanswered too." Another friend added: "Harry is frightened and feels the only person who can do anything about it is his father."

Another source added: "Harry is determined to protect his own family at all costs." Harry took legal action over a February 2020 decision by the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) which ruled he would no longer be given the 'same degree' of publicly-funded protection when in the country.

Ravec's decision came as a result of a change in the duke's 'status' after he stopped being a 'full-time working member of the royal family'. In February, retired High Court judge Sir Peter Lane rejected the Duke's case that he was 'singled out' and treated 'less favourably' by the decision.

He concluded Ravec's approach was not irrational nor procedurally unfair. After the ruling, a legal spokesperson for Harry said in a statement that the Duke 'hopes to obtain justice from the Court of Appeal'.