Victoria Beckham has said she and husband Sir David have “always tried to be the best parents that we can be”, in her first public response after their eldest son Brooklyn exposed a rift in the family.

Brooklyn Peltz Beckham posted a lengthy Instagram statement in January, accusing his parents of trying to to “ruin” his relationship with his wife Nicola, and of basing family love on the public promotion of “Brand Beckham”.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Lady Beckham said: “I think that we’ve always – we love our children so much.

“We’ve always tried to be the best parents that we can be. And you know, we’ve been in the public eye for more than 30 years right now, and all we’ve ever tried to do is protect our children and love our children.”

Lady Beckham wished Brooklyn a happy birthday on social media last month, but her latest interview marks her first direct comment on the rift.

In his six-page Instagram statement in January, Brooklyn made clear that relations with his parents had broken down, saying he had been forced to respond after they had “continued to go to the press”.

He made claims including that his mother had “cancelled making Nicola’s [wedding] dress at the eleventh hour” and “danced very inappropriately on me in front of everyone” during the ceremony.

He also claimed his family values “public promotion and endorsements above all else”, adding that “family ‘love’ is decided by how much you post on social media, or how quickly you drop everything to show up and pose for a family photo opp”.

The events of the wedding have been disputed by some guests. DJ Fat Tony backed up Brooklyn’s claim about the “awkward dance” with his mother, but singer Marc Anthony said the way events had been presented was “hardly the truth”.

Sir David has not commented directly, but speaking generally about social media at a panel in Davos shortly after Booklyn’s statement, he said children are “allowed to make mistakes”.