William `turns down invitation to Swedish Princess wedding`

London: Prince William is said to have turned down an invitation to attend the wedding of Sweden`s crown Princess Victoria in Stockholm, along with his longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton.According to the `Daily Star`, Sweden`s Royal Family were desperate to bag William and his own lady-in-waiting Kate as star guests when Crown Princess Victoria weds fiancé Daniel Westling this summer.

But, the 27-year-old second-in-line to the British throne has made it clear that neither he nor Kate will be at the event in Stockholm, the report said, adding that Prince Charles may, however, accept the formal invitation when it arrives at Buckingham Palace later this month. Princess Victoria, 32 -- a cousin of the British royals -- was once tipped as a potential bride for William when he and Kate split for a while. In fact, William has now been under intense pressure to name his own wedding day and is expected to say that royal duties at the World Cup in South Africa will keep him away, the newspaper claimed. "But he would rather go anywhere than a royal wedding at the moment. The Scandinavian royals are a lot more relaxed about protocol so Kate could go. But William feels it would be like firing a starting gun and their faces would be on souvenir tea towels by the time the service was over," a friend of the Prince was quoted as saying. William`s decision to serve up to three years as a search and rescue pilot at RAF Valley in Anglesey is being seen as an indication he plans to slow down his own marriage plans. PTI