The UK government is facing mounting pressure from Beijing over plans for a massive new Chinese embassy in central London.
China has warned that the UK “will bear all the consequences” if approval for the project is further delayed, escalating a diplomatic row that has been simmering for years.
China’s Furious Response to New Delays
The Chinese Foreign Ministry has expressed open anger after the UK postponed a decision on the embassy, which is set to become the largest in Europe.
The ministry issued a blunt warning, saying the UK must “immediately fulfil its obligations and honour its commitments, otherwise the British side shall bear all the consequences.”
Lin Jian, a spokesman for the ministry, described the repeated delays as evidence that the UK had “acted in bad faith and without integrity” and had shown “disregard for the contractual spirit,” remarks reported to Bloomberg.
Background of the London Embassy Controversy
The saga stretches back to 2018, when China purchased the 215,280 sq ft site of the old Royal Mint for £255 million from the Crown Estate.
Security experts immediately flagged the location, which sits above sensitive underground communications in the City of London.
Concerns have also been raised by members of the Hong Kong diaspora, who fear the embassy could be used to monitor or intimidate political dissidents.
Leaked plans, including redacted basement designs, only amplified those fears.
Planning Delays and Government Scrutiny
Tower Hamlets Council initially rejected the embassy plans in 2022, but the government intervened.
Angela Rayner, then Housing Secretary, called in the application, sparking accusations that ministers were bowing to Chinese pressure.
Rayner’s successor, Steve Reed, was expected to make a ruling soon, but the decision has now been pushed back again, this time until December.
This ongoing delay comes amid broader concerns over Chinese espionage in Whitehall and controversy surrounding the collapse of a Chinese spying trial.
Warnings from UK Security Officials
The embassy plans have drawn criticism not just from politicians but also from former government advisers.
Dominic Cummings, ex-Chief Adviser to Boris Johnson, told ITV News that UK security services had explicitly warned the government that the new embassy could serve as a “spy centre.”
He added: “MI5 and MI6 said to me explicitly that China is trying to build a spy centre underneath the embassy.
It is an extremely bad idea to allow this to go ahead, particularly given the cables and sensitive infrastructure directly underneath London.”
Cummings claimed that some parts of Whitehall, especially the Treasury, were hesitant to challenge China directly, which further complicates decision-making.
Diplomatic Fallout Looms
China’s embassy has already publicly condemned repeated postponements, calling them “groundless and unjustifiable” and stating that host countries have an international obligation to facilitate the construction of diplomatic premises.
As London waits for the December decision, the dispute highlights the delicate balancing act for the UK: managing diplomatic relations with China while addressing serious national security concerns about espionage and sensitive infrastructure.