Prince William proved he has a natural way with children this afternoon as he visited a refugee centre in Poland – just miles from the Ukranian border.
The father-of-three, 40, happily posed for selfies and even challenged children to a game of table tennis while touring the organisation in the Mokotow district in Warsaw.
During his surprise visit, the royal played peek-a-boo with a four-year-old refugee called Tympthi and was pictured happily chatting with children and their carers.
What’s more, the Prince of Wales also got stuck into making paper snowflakes with another group.
Prince William is pictured here speaking with a young boy named Marco, who is a Ukrainian resident at an accommodation centre in Warsaw. Marco spoke t o the prince about his experiences moving to Poland
The centre is at the frontline of the humanitarian crisis and houses around 300 Ukrainian women and children.
It provides residents with two meals per day, while also offering a range of other services including Polish language lessons, a children’s play area and psychological support.
Prince William wore a navy blue two piece suit, which he kept casual by leaving the top two buttons unfastened.
During his visit, the 40-year-old Duke of Cornwall met with a young Ukrainian boy Marco, who spoke to the Prince about his experiences of moving to Poland.
He was also spotted speaking to a young girl, who showed the Prince her iPad, and engaging at a craft table with other youngsters.
Sharing photos of his visit on Instagram, William said: ‘The welcoming community and supportive volunteers here are doing so much to help those in need.
‘It’s clear to see how the 300 Ukrainian women and children staying here can remain so positive having experienced such hardship.’
Earlier in the day Prince William met British troops and thanked them for ‘defending our freedoms’ during a surprise visit to Poland just miles from the Ukrainian border.
Prince William visited the centre, at the frontline of the humanitarian crisis, and met with many children there. He was captured smiling and laughing as he engaged with them
The Prince of Wales is seen here speaking to a young girl about something on her iPad. The centre is the home for 300 refugees who have fled Ukraine
The royal, 40, is currently paying a surprise visit to Poland during which he has already met with Polish and British soldiers in Rzeszow. The father-of-three was pictured chatting with the children and their carers
Prince William was seen engaging with residents at the centre, which provides residents with two meals per day, while also offering a range of other services including Polish language lessons, a children’s play area and psychological support
The centre is at the frontline of the humanitarian crisis and houses around 300 Ukrainian women and children. Prince William pictured with a refugee at the centre in Poland
Prince William took the time to pose with residents at the refugee centre and pose for pictures with children
The Prince of Wales also took part in a game of table tennis during his surprise visit to Poland today
Prince William told troops that ‘everyone back home thoroughly supports you’ after travelling amid massive security to the country.
He hailed the ‘incredible’ air defence weapons on show at a top secret military base, which is home to 75 Britons working with Polish and US allies and is just 50 miles from Ukraine’s border.
The UK servicemen are part of the first line of defence against Vladimir Putin’s brutal war on Nato’s eastern flank.
William’s trip to Rzeszow, a city in south-eastern Poland, was ‘a personal mission’ to ‘recognise their duty’ of service personnel largely consisting of the Royal Artillery Regiment, sources close to the future King said.
He also got up close and personal to see Britain’s high-tech surface-to-air Sky Sabre missile defence system deployed near the border during his trip, which had been shrouded in total secrecy for security reasons.
It is his first visit to Poland since going to the country with his wife Kate in 2017.
Dressed casually in a black puffer jacket, shirt and navy trousers, William addressed the soldiers in the shadow of two fully armed missile launchers.
Speaking without a script, he told the assembled troops: ‘I know how busy you all are. Thank you for hosting me today.
‘I just wanted to come here in person to say thank you for all that you are doing, keeping everyone safe out here and keeping an eye on what’s going on.
Always the sportsman, Prince William joined in a game of table tennis. He is pictured here taking his shot very seriously while his young team mate looks on in anticipation
Team meeting! The Duke of Cornwall is having a tactical conversation with his table tennis team mate here
Taking time to speak with adults and volunteers at the centre, the Prince sat down to refreshments. The visit was part of his surprise visit to Poland
For his special visit Prince William wore a navy blue two piece suit, which he kept casual with a powder blue shirt, leaving the top two buttons unfastened. He was captured engaging with many children
Here in the busy refugee centre, Prince William is seen speaking to one young boy and looks like he is trying to get a high five from the youngster
As a place of refuge to all ages, the 300 residents are mainly children and mothers. Here Prince William is speaking to a young boy holding, presumably his baby sibling
Here the Prince is engaging with a group of children and adults at the centre. Earlier in the day Prince William met British troops and thanked them for ‘defending our freedoms’ during a surprise visit to Poland just miles from the Ukrainian border.
The Prince of Wales looked troubled as he sat back and listened to refugees tell their stories about leaving their home and making the trip to Poland
‘So just a big thank you for what you do on a day-to-day basis.
‘I know some of you are coming to the end of your time out here so looking forward to a bit of R and R when you get home.
‘But you are doing a really good job out here, defending our freedoms is really important and everyone back home thoroughly supports you.
‘And everything you are doing with our Polish counterparts in providing that safety is really important, so thank you for your time, lovely to meet you all and good luck.’
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