Prince Andrew, who has been accused of sexually exploiting Virginia Roberts-Giuffre and other teenage girls who were trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein, just announced that he will step back from his royal duties.

“It has become clear to me over the last few days that the circumstances relating to my former association with Jeffrey Epstein has become a major disruption to my family’s work and the valuable work going on in the many organisations and charities that I am proud to support,” he said in a statement issued today by Buckingham Palace.

“Therefore, I have asked Her Majesty if I may step back from public duties for the foreseeable future, and she has given her permission.

“I continue to unequivocally regret my ill-judged association with Jeffrey Epstein. His suicide has left many unanswered questions, particularly for his victims, and I deeply sympathise with everyone who has been affected and wants some form of closure.

“I can only hope that, in time, they will be able to rebuild their lives.

“Of course, I am willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required.”

Prince Andrew’s “step back” will mean he’ll not only be out of the public eye, but will take no money from the publicly-funded Sovereign Grant - which supports working members of the Royal Family - while his charities and patronages will be put on hold.

It’s understood his absence from royal duties will continue until there has been some form of conclusion in the Jeffrey Epstein case, or unless his name is cleared.

It’s the first time, the Duke of York has publicly expressed regret over his relationship with Epstein, and expressed any sympathy for the billionaire paedophile’s victims — two omissions from an interview aired by the BBC’s Newsnight that sparked backlash.

The Prince answered questions about his friendship with Epstein — a convicted paedophile who died by suicide in a Manhattan jail on August 10.

The interview was widely described as a “trainwreck” with the royal criticised for not showing empathy for Epstein’s victims and for his decision to stay at the wealthy financier’s New York home in December 2010. That came just months after Epstein had served 13 months of an 18 month sentence for procuring a minor for prostitution.

As the fallout continues, several businesses and charities pulled their support from the prince’s royal work.

Standard Chartered has already cancelled its sponsorship of Andrew’s Pitch@Palace, while AstraZeneca’s support is under review.

Outward Bound Trust - of which he is patron - also announced it was holding a board meeting this week to discuss the matter.

Meanwhile, the FBI is continuing their investigation into Epstein and his associates, and it remains to be seen whether Prince Andrew will be called in to testify.

Prince Andrew has also come under fire over allegations he also sexually abused girls — claims he has vehemently denied — while visiting his then-friend Epstein at his various properties.

A photo of the British royal posing with his hand around teen Virginia Giuffre — one of Epstein’s alleged victims — was purportedly taken at British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell’s home and has become a source of contention.

In a 2009 legal case, Giuffre publicly claimed Maxwell had recruited her into Epstein’s sex ring to be a “sex slave” when she was just 16 years old.

Giuffre claims Epstein flew her to London on his private jet. After dining with the Prince and dancing with him at the Tramp nightclub, she claims, they had a sexual encounter in Maxwell’s Belgravia house.

Giuffre says Maxwell directed her as a teenager to have sex with Prince Andrew, former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell and former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson. They deny her claims. She also claimed in the case, which was settled out of court, that Ms Maxwell and Epstein sexually assaulted her, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Maxwell called Giuffre’s claims “entirely false”, compelling the latter to file the 2015 defamation suit. But in May 2017, the case was settled the day before the trial was scheduled to start.

This is Prince Andrew's Twitter:

The Duke of York@TheDukeOfYork ‏