A US House of Representatives committee has sounded the alarm over China’s plan to build a huge embassy in London, saying the project raises “significant security concerns” for the UK financial services industry.
“The People’s Republic of China mega-embassy in the UK raises significant security concerns: from interference and surveillance to risks for sensitive infrastructure like London’s financial services,” the House China committee wrote on X.
“We must work to urgently address this issue and work with our allies to protect national security,” added the committee, which is chaired by John Moolenaar, a Republican congressman from Michigan.
China wants to build its largest diplomatic complex in Europe near the Tower of London, replacing its embassy in Marylebone in central London. But the project has sparked concern from local residents and some politicians who have warned about the potential for increased espionage.
President Xi Jinping last year raised the issue of the new building with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi also discussed the topic — and a separate UK plan to build a new embassy in Beijing — with British foreign secretary David Lammy in London last week, according to people briefed on the diplomatic talks.
In recent years, UK security officials, particularly MI5, have become more vocal about alleged Chinese espionage.
The Tower Hamlets local authority, which has jurisdiction over the historic Royal Mint Court site, last year refused to approve the project, partly on security grounds. UK housing secretary Angela Rayner later took control of the planning decision and will make the final determination.
The Metropolitan Police previously voiced opposition to the proposed plans over concerns that anti-China protests would affect traffic but later withdrew its objections.
In January, Lammy and UK home secretary Yvette Cooper expressed support for the project, saying countries had to have diplomatic presences.
The intervention followed a trip to China by UK chancellor Rachel Reeves aimed at boosting economic ties. The trip marked the first visit to China by a British chancellor since 2017 and came as Starmer’s government stepped up diplomatic engagement with Beijing.
The concerns raised in Washington by the House China committee come as the Trump administration debates whether to approve a deal between the UK and Mauritius that has implications for a critical joint US-UK military base on Diego Garcia, one of the islands in the Chagos Archipelago.
The US is worried about the potential for China to spy at Diego Garcia, which is an important transit point for nuclear submarines and bombers.
