Buckingham Palace reacted to the news that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were stepping down as senior members of the royal family with a statement of its own.

Discussions with The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are at an early stage, the palace said in a statement. We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through.

Just a few hours earlier, Harry and Meghan made the unprecedented announcement that the two would be stepping back from their positions as senior members of the royal family.