克里姆林宮：查爾斯王子不配當英國國王

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Russia yesterday lashed out at Prince Charles for comparing Vladimir Putin to Hitler, publicly questioning his fitness to be king. As controversy continued to rage around the world, Russia's foreign ministry said his remarks were 'unacceptable, outrageous and dishonourable' and 'not worthy of a future British monarch'.

The Daily Mail revealed earlier this week the prince's extraordinary remarks as he met Second World War veterans and their families on his Canada visit. His remarks were seen as a reference to Putin's seizure of Crimea. 'And now Putin is doing just about the same as Hitler,' he said.

Russian diplomats insisted on meeting counterparts in London, where they are understood to have demanded an official explanation. But the frosty 40-minute talks at the Foreign Office in London ended without agreement when British officials flatly refused to discuss Charles's words – and instead attacked Russia for seeking to destabilise eastern Ukraine.

'There was not a meeting of minds,' said one senior Whitehall source. As the diplomatic crisis escalated:

* Pro-Putin media in Russia linked the Royal Family to the Nazis in retaliation for Charles's attack.

* The Russian leader's biographer condemned the prince's remarks, insisting he had no 'plans for world domination as Hitler openly did'.

* Charles flew back to Britain at the end of his tour of Canada, where he made his comments.

* The Foreign Office said it had told Russian diplomats to stop interfering in Ukraine's presidential elections taking place on Sunday.

* A Russian newspaper close to the regime attacked Charles as 'a clearly defined eccentric' whose remarks were in keeping with his 'royal foolishness'.

Russian foreign ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich questioned whether Charles was fit to be king after his broadside comparing Putin and Hitler. 'If these words were really said, then undoubtedly they are not worthy of a future British monarch,' he said.

Privately, Charles has expressed his frustration that his trip has been dominated by a remark that was not, to his mind, a political statement but an expression of sympathy.