Britain’s Prince William on Monday paid tribute to Ukrainians struggling to survive in their homeland after he and his wife Kate visited a British military training camp in the Belize jungle during their one-day tour. week in the Caribbean. Prince William, a former pilot in Britain’s Royal Air Force, spoke about safeguarding democracy and noted that Belize had joined many other countries in condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Today we think of those who are struggling in Ukraine and we stand in solidarity with them,” Prince William said during an official dinner on the grounds of the Cahal Pech Archaeological Reserve with the Prime Minister of Belize. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s visit to the Central American country coincides with the celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s 70th anniversary on the throne and comes at a time when colonial-era British conduct in the Caribbean is under pressure. increasingly monitored.

Prince William’s remarks followed a stop at the British Army Training Support Unit (BATSUB) Jungle Training Center in the Chiquibul Forest Reserve in central Belize. The couple drank water collected from a water vine as they met British and Belizean servicemen.

Prince William split palm leaves to find water, and the couple were shown shelters and animal traps made from jungle materials as part of the survival techniques used by the soldiers. The visit brought back memories of William’s gap year trips to Belize more than two decades ago. The prince, 18 at the time, joined the Welsh Rangers on a rugged trek through the jungle after graduating from Eton in 2000.

He remembers receiving his A-level results while deep in the jungle. “It was really mortifying to see my notes played over a military radio with a whole bunch of soldiers listening in,” Prince William said. “Fortunately, the results weren’t too bad.”

Earlier in the day, the royal couple visited ancient Mayan ruins in Caracol, central Belize, climbing pyramids and exploring the vast archaeological site of the Chiquibul Forest Reserve. “Wow!” Kate said as the couple scaled a major temple and took in panoramic views of Mayan ruins nestled in the lush vegetation of the forest reserve on day three of their Caribbean tour.

The couple were given a private tour of the site, including the “Caana”, or heavenly palace, which the Maya believe would help them communicate with the gods. Caana remains one of the tallest structures in Belize. Even before the royal couple left Britain, a protest by a few dozen villagers at a planned stop in Belize prompted organizers to change Sunday’s itinerary in the country which was known until 1973 as the name of British Honduras.

Their visit comes nearly four months after Barbados voted to become a republic, cutting ties with the British monarchy but remaining part of the British-ruled Commonwealth of Nations. William and Kate are due to leave Belize on Tuesday morning and travel to Jamaica and the Bahamas.

Debates over colonial-era abuses and plans to seek reparations for slavery in Jamaica could push more countries to follow Barbados’ recent ruling, scholars say.

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