Prince William to Step in for King Charles at Special D-Day Commemorations in France

The Prince of Wales will be in Normandy, France, with other heads of state, while Charles and Queen Camilla are at a separate event

Prince William is stepping up as an international statesman.

The Prince of Wales will represent his father King Charles at a key D-Day commemoration in Normandy, north-east France next week.

William, 41, is set to be the senior U.K. figure at a gathering of 25 world leaders at Omaha beach, Saint Laurent sur Mer, on the 80th anniversary of the landings on June 6. The ceremony will honor the estimated 160,000 American, British and Canadian troops who landed at the beach on D-Day.

The battles on D-Day of June 6, 1944, and in the weeks that followed, pushed the German forces back from the coast and across France and were among the most important in bringing about the end of the Second World War, which ended almost a year later.

As well as being alongside international heads of state, William will join D-Day veterans and attend the the Canadian commemorative ceremony at the Juno Beach Centre, Courseulles-sur-Mer, hosted by the Canadian government, Buckingham Palace has announced.

William expected to travel to France solo, as his wife Kate Middleton, 42, is still not undertaking public duties as she undergoes her cancer treatment.

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Charles, 75, and Queen Camilla, 76, will be in Normandy for the celebrations but will be at a separate event marking the British memorial.

President Joe Biden will also be in France, while French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed that Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy would also be taking part in the commemorations, the Associated Press reported.

The event is the latest step for William in his burgeoning international role. As heir to the throne, he has to navigate the difficult terrain of appealing to politicians and decision-makers while not overstepping the mark and becoming party-political on the world stage.

In the past, he has urged President Xi Jinping in China to join the ban on the illegal trade in endangered wildlife and deftly taken part in diplomatic visits to Israel and Pakistan.

"In his early 20s, I always had to pinch myself to remind me that he was still a very young man. He already had an extraordinary maturity," Charlie Mayhew, CEO of the Tusk Trust charity previously told PEOPLE. "That, I suppose, comes with a knowledge of his destiny. He has developed into a really valuable statesman for this country and for conservation and the environment."

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The events in France are among a set of special occasions to mark the bravery and sacrifices of those who took part in the historic landings. Other members of the Royal Family will take part in celebrations in the U.K. too.

It is part of a busy period of public outings for the King and his family. The following week will see the annual birthday parade or Trooping the Colour, followed by the Order of the Garter ceremony and Royal Ascot horse races, which start on June 20.

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