Updated

Prince Harry, who recently completed his basic military training, joined his army regiment Monday, taking the next step in his career with the British army that could take him to Iraq.

Harry, who is third in line to the throne of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, joined the Blues and Royals division of the prestigious Household Cavalry.

The 21-year-old second son of Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana finished his training at Sandhurst military academy last month.

On Monday he turned up for duty at Combermere Barracks in Windsor, west of London.

He will spend two weeks settling in at the barracks and getting to know his regiment before starting four months of training at Bovington in southwest England.

Harry, who currently holds the rank of cornet, will become an Armoured Reconnaissance Troop Leader. He has said he hopes to see action on the front line, possibly in Iraq.

The Ministry of Defense has confirmed that he will go to Iraq if his unit is deployed there, but says he might be kept out of situations where his presence would jeopardize his comrades.

No date has been set for any possible deployment in Iraq.

Separately Monday, Harry's older brother, Prince William, returned to Sandhurst to continue his military training.

Both princes attended prestigious Eton College in Windsor.

Harry went straight from school to Sandhurst, but William, 23, obtained a degree in geography from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland before embarking on a military career.