Republican lawmakers in Washington are sounding alarm over China’s plans to build a large embassy in London, urging the British ambassador to raise the issue with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer during his trip this week to Washington.
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Starmer is expected in Washington for several days of meetings, including one with US President Donald Trump, as European leaders seek continued US support for Ukraine.
“Gifting the Chinese Communist government with the largest embassy in Europe is a counterproductive and unearned reward,” Representatives John Moolenaar of Michigan and Chris Smith of New Jersey wrote to Lord Peter Mandelson, Britain’s ambassador to the US, on Wednesday.
Moolenaar, who chairs the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and Smith, who co-chairs the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, argued that granting Beijing a prominent diplomatic presence contradicts its record on human rights, adding that it would only “embolden its efforts to intimidate and harass UK citizens and dissidents”.
China wants to build a roughly 700,000-square-foot embassy at the site of the Royal Mint Court, the former headquarters of Britain’s coin maker, near the Tower of London, to replace its embassy in central London. The plan has raised concern from local residents and politicians who have cautioned about the potential for increased espionage.
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Partly on security grounds, the council in the London borough of Tower Hamlets rejected China’s proposal in 2022 and again in December. The final decision to approve the project rests with the central government.