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Prince Harry Delivers Powerful Speech in NYC & Opens Up About Becoming a Dad for the Second Time

Princess Diana would be proud

Prince Harry
John Nacion/Getty Images

Prince Harry is honoring his mother's legacy with a thoughtful speech—and I'm all ears.

The Duke of Sussex, 40, paid a three-day visit to New York and attended a private engagement with The HALO Trust—a humanitarian organization that works to clear landmines and debris from conflict zones. During his appearance, he made a powerful statement about his mother's history with the organization and even mentioned how fatherhood has inspired his advocacy.

In footage shared by Hello! Magazine, the prince said, "Carrying on her legacy is a responsibility that I take incredibly seriously. I think we all know how much she wants us all to finish this particular job. We're all here because we're a band of true leaders, fighting for a mine-free world."

prince harry speech halo trust
ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images

The royal reflected on a special trip from 2019, explaining how he "walked in his mother's footsteps" in Huambo, Angola. He recalled, "Where she first walked in 1997, I found a bustling, vibrant town. And there are hundreds of schoolchildren who have no idea that the ground that they stood on was once riddled with landmines. It is moments like these that I'm personally grateful for our collected efforts."

In addition, Prince Harry opened up about becoming a father again, noting how it impacted his determination to join this initiative. He said, "Much has changed in my life and the world since 2019 when I first visited. In those five years, I've become a father for the second time. And while you don't need children to have a stake in the future of our planet, I do know that my mother would have been horrified that anyone's children or grandchildren would live in a world still infested with mines."

prince harry walks minefield
Pool/Samir Hussein/WireImage

Prince Harry then discussed his continued commitment to making the world landmine-free. He added, "We are resolute as we work toward a future where landmines are a distant memory, where families and communities can thrive in their land without fear of life, changing injuries or death, where countries can finally declare that they are landmine-free and experience the immense opportunities and change that comes with it."

Per Hello!, Prince Harry became a Patron of the HALO Trust back in 2013, just three years after he paid a visit to minefields in Tete Province, Mozambique and spoke with the trust about mine clearance. And on International Mine Awareness Day in 2017, he pledged to help make the world landmine-free by 2025. 

To say that Princess Diana would be proud feels like an understatement.

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