White House 'concerned' about Chinese mega-embassy plans after experts raised security fears
The White House is 'deeply concerned' by Labour's plan to approve a new Chinese mega-embassy in London with a basement just metres from sensitive cables, according to reports. A senior Trump official has raised fears that the embassy could be used to attack the UK's infrastructure.The official told The Telegraph: “The United States remains deeply concerned about adversaries exploiting the critical infrastructure of our closest allies.”Detailed plans of the super-embassy emerged on Tuesday that show a hidden underground complex beneath the development. Beijing had sought to keep the details secret by redacting all publicly available versions of the plans. Read more: China’s biggest European embassy to be built in London under new plansRead more: Trump declares US will act on Greenland 'whether they like it not' as he warns of Russia and China threat
The proposed site at Royal Mint Court.
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Google
They show a concealed chamber that will sit about a metre from fibre-optic cables that transmit financial data to the City of London, as well as email and messaging traffic for millions of internet users.A US government source told The Telegraph that Britain risked giving up any bargaining power it has over Beijing by approving the plans before the talks.“In a world where leverage with China matters, the UK is giving up all its leverage in the hope of a trade deal,” they said.Another US government source claimed British foreign office counterparts had “downplayed” the risk of accessing the cables during their discussions.John Moolenaar, the chairman of the US House of Representatives’ select committee on China, said he “opposed” the embassy plans and raised fears that Americans’ data may be “at risk”.“The CCP is a threat to the UK – a Five Eyes intelligence partner – and free people everywhere,” he said.Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is expected to sign off on the embassy before a visit to China later this month.After the secret rooms were uncovered intelligence expert branded the plans “lunacy”, as Labour MPs urge the Government to block the development over fears it could be used for espionage and intimidation.“It’s lunacy. It is completely mad to give China, particularly today’s China, this sort of site in such a sensitive place.”Anthony Glees, a professor of intelligence and security at University of Buckingham, told LBC's Nick Ferrari at Breakfast that the proposed site at Royal Mint Court sits alarmingly close to fibre-optic cables carrying vast amounts of financial and communications data from the City of London and Canary Wharf.
The plans have been described as 'lunacy' by an expert due to their proximity to critical internet infrastructure.
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David Chipperfield Architects
Professor Glees warned that embassies belonging to hostile or adversarial states are always a security risk, but said this case was exceptional in scale and sensitivity.“What people call the cloud isn’t in the sky, it’s in the ground,” he said, pointing to the underground cables. “You can see from the plans how close rooms run to those cables. They can be tapped very easily. There are also heating systems suitable for large servers. In my view, this would not just spy on the UK, it would become the Chinese intelligence hub for the whole of Europe.”
David Chipperfield's plans to transform the former Royal Mint into China's UK embassy.
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David Chipperfield Architects
He also raised concerns about the size and design of the embassy complex, suggesting it could facilitate intimidation or detention of critics, referencing the 2022 incident in which a Hong Kong democracy protester was dragged into the Chinese consulate in Manchester and assaulted.The comments come as a group of Labour MPs urge the Government to block the development. Nine MPs have written to Communities Secretary Steve Reed warning that the embassy could be used to “step up intimidation” against dissidents and poses unresolved risks to national security.
The site of the proposed new Chinese embassy on the site of the former Royal Mint in Tower Hamlets, east London.
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Alamy
The letter highlights China’s “recent track record of espionage, interference activities, and issuing bounties against UK-based Hong Kongers”, as well as the fact the site sits above infrastructure critical to Britain’s economy and security. Among the signatories is Sarah Champion, a member of Parliament’s Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy.If confirmed, Starmer's visit would be the first by a UK prime minister since Theresa May travelled there in 2018.Professor Glees said he was astonished by reports that MI5 and MI6 had not expressed concerns. He questioned whether Britain could credibly claim it can manage the risks posed by Chinese intelligence operations, pointing to the collapse of a recent espionage case linked to Parliament.“We look soft,” he said. “This should not be allowed to happen. Whatever reassurance is being hinted at, it cannot be accepted.”MPs from across the political spectrum have echoed those warnings, urging ministers to reject China’s application to build the embassy on the former Royal Mint site, arguing that the strategic risks are simply too high.
