Prince Edward is breaking his silence after brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor made new headlines for his connection to late billionaire sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. CNN's Eleni Giokos asked Edward, 61, at the World Governments Summit in Dubai on Tuesday, February 3, how he was "coping" after the latest batch of documents in the Epstein files were released late last week. "Well, with the best will in the world, I'm not sure this is the audience that is probably the least bit interested in that," the Duke of Edinburgh began his reply. "They all came here to listen to education, solving the future." He added, "But no, I think it's all really important always to remember the victims, and who are the victims in all this, a lot of victims in all this." How Is Prince Andrew Connected to the Jeffrey Epstein Scandal? Timeline Edward's statement on Tuesday made him the first royal family member to publicly comment on Andrew's inclusion in the Epstein files. (Epstein died by suicide at age 66 in August 2019 while incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York.) More than 100 photographs from the Epstein estate were released on Friday, January 30, including three of Andrew. He was photographed alongside a fully clothed woman whose face had been removed from the image. Andrew touched the unidentified woman's stomach and waist in two of the images. A third photo appeared to show him kneeling on all fours over the woman's body while looking directly at the camera. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images Us Weekly reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment. Andrew's apparent connection to Epstein has been making headlines since 2019, when the late Virginia Giuffre accused the disgraced royal family member of sexual assault. Giuffre, who died by suicide at age 41 in April 2025, alleged that she and Andrew had multiple sexual encounters when she was underage in 2001. Giuffre sued Andrew for sexual abuse in 2021, and they settled outside of court the following year. Andrew has continued to maintain his innocence. Last year, Andrew made headlines for alleged past email correspondence between himself and Epstein. The former duke also made headlines alongside Giuffre once again in October 2025, when her posthumously released memoir, Nobody's Girl, offered more details about her alleged sexual encounters with both Andrew and Epstein. Shocking Claims From Prince Andrew Accuser Virginia Giuffre's New Book King Charles III stripped Andrew of his titles and evicted him from his home shortly after Giuffre's book was published. "Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor," a royal family statement released in October 2025 read. "His lease on Royal Lodge has, to date, provided him with legal protection to continue in residence. Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease and he will move to alternative private accommodation." The statement concluded, "These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him. Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse." If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). If you or someone you know is a human trafficking victim, contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.