Prince Harry and the royal family have not been on the best terms in recent years, with Harry having major tensions with King Charles and Prince William. But in a surprising turn of events, both Charles and William wished Harry a public happy birthday after not having done so since 2021.

Although the move appears to be the royal family’s way of extending an olive branch, it still appears that Harry will not make a UK return any time soon for one major reason.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle with Prince Archie | Samir Hussein/Pool/WireImage

Prince Harry’s security is still a concern in the United Kingdom

Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, moved to the United States back in 2020, and they’re currently raising their two kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, in Montecito, California. Harry and his extended family have not spent much time together since the Sussexes relocated, though he did return to the UK back in February to speak with his father shortly after Charles’ cancer diagnosis.

Although the birthday message from the royals was a good sign, one royal expert notes that Harry will not bring his family back to the UK any time soon due to the security threat.

“The bottom line is Harry doesn’t feel his safety is guaranteed in the UK,” a friend close to the prince told BBC, via Express. “When he was here earlier in the year, he was offered a place to stay at a royal residence in London. He turned it down believing his royal location would become public knowledge, attract media attention and make his movements around London difficult and risky. Instead, he stayed under the radar, based with his team in a London hotel.”

The royal family reportedly has no control over the British government removing Harry and Meghan’s taxpayer-funded security, so unless that changes, Harry and Meghan will likely remain in the US.

Prince Harry’s friend says Harry’s whole life in is the United States

Harry is reportedly interested in bringing his family back to the UK for visits, but there is no sign that he ever plans to permanently relocate from the United States. “Why would he give up everything he’s accomplished there to come back here? His life is now in America,” the source said.

Harry and Meghan likely would not make a permanent move back to the UK, but that doesn’t mean they would never pay the country a visit if given the chance. For now, Harry’s main concern will always be keeping his family safe, so even if he wanted to reconcile with the royals, nothing much could get done until his security issues were sorted through.