Thomas Markle Breaks Silence on Meghan Markle's 'Hurtful' Letter

Meghan Markle's estranged father, Thomas, is finally opening up about why he chose to publicly release parts of his daughter's private letter to him. He claims that he did it to defend himself after parts of the letter were "misrepresented" in PEOPLE by Meghan's friends.

The five-page, handwritten letter was received by Thomas in August of 2018. It would have remained a secret, but in February of this year an anonymous "long-time friend" of Meghan's told the publication about it. She portrayed the letter as a loving note.

"After the wedding she wrote him a letter," she told PEOPLE. "She's like, 'Dad. I'm so heartbroken. I love you, I have one father. Please stop victimising me through the media so we can repair our relationship.'"

Thomas had a very different interpretation of the letter, and viewed it as "final farewell." He told The Daily Mail, "I decided to release parts of the letter because of the article from Meghan's friends in PEOPLE magazine. I have to defend myself. I only released parts of the letter because other parts were so painful. The letter didn't seem loving to me. I found it hurtful."

He had previously told the same newspaper, "The letter was presented in a way that vilified me and wasn't true. It was presented as her reaching out and writing a loving letter in the hope of healing the rift, but the letter isn't like that at all. I have the right to defend myself."

Markle's father also has strong feelings about the photo-op he requested with his daughter. Meghan's friend told the publication: "He writes her a really long letter in return, and he closes it by requesting a photo op with her. And she feels like, 'That's the opposite of what I'm saying. I'm telling you I don't want to communicate through the media and you're asking me to communicate through the media. Did you hear anything I said?' It's almost like they're ships passing. He knows how to get in touch with her. Her telephone number hasn't changed. He's never called, he's never texted."

He says that wasn't his motivation at all. Thomas wanted the photo-op to show the world that the two are friends despite all they've been through.

"When Doria [Meghan's mother] was photographed with Meghan and Harry for the first time it showed she was part of the family. I don't want a picture for any other reason than if we show harmony then the press will back off," he said.

Thomas is still hopeful that he and his daughter can rekindle a relationship. "I don't recognize the person who wrote the letter but I still love my daughter. All it would take is one phone call and most of this craziness would stop."

All of this drama has taken a toll on Markle and husband Prince Harry. He recently filed a lawsuit against several British media outlets.