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China on Wednesday accused the British government of recent delays in deciding whether to approve the construction of a huge new embassy in London.
British authorities announced on Tuesday that a decision due by Dec. 10 would be postponed to Jan. 20 due to heightened security concerns.
“The UK’s repeated delays in approval are completely unjustified, and the reasons given by the UK are unacceptable,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.
The government is “strongly dissatisfied,” he added.
Plans to build an embassy near London’s financial district and sensitive data cables have stalled for years.
The building, which will be built at the Royal Mint near the Tower of London, will be Europe’s largest embassy, with an area of 20,000 square meters.
Critics have raised concerns that the building could be used as a base for espionage operations, and MPs across the political spectrum have called on the government to reject the proposal.
The UK government’s planning authority said the decision had been postponed to give it more time to consider.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman Tom Wells said on Tuesday: “The Home Office and the Foreign Office have taken views on specific security implications and have been consistently clear that no decisions should be made until we are satisfied that those considerations have been completed or resolved.”
Critics have suggested the decision may have been delayed in preparation for Mr Starmer’s planned visit to Beijing early next year.
Additional sources of information • AP
