China is about to build an unprecedented diplomatic complex on European soil. However, what has put the British intelligence services on high alert is not the façade of the building, but what its foundations hide. According to an investigation by uncensored plans for China’s future “super embassy” in London reveal an underground network of 208 secret rooms. In this concrete labyrinth, a strategic room stands out: a hidden camera located exactly next to the most sensitive communication cables in the country, a discovery that has unleashed a real political storm in Downing Street.
The complex sits on the former Royal Mint, an enclave of 22,000 square meters that Beijing has tried to protect from prying eyes. Technical diagrams show that one of these secret rooms directly abuts the fiber optic cables that support not only the City’s financial data, but also the email and messaging traffic of millions of users. The maneuver is surgical: China plans to demolish and rebuild the outer basement wall to place its officials just one meter from the backbone of the British financial system.
For MI5, this is not a conspiracy theory. The plans detail that the room will have powerful hot air extraction systems, a technical detail that reveals the installation of high-performance computer equipment, typical of advanced espionage. Although Beijing may claim that these are internal servers or even a gym, their proximity to the infrastructure of giants such as BT Openreach or Verizon is a direct threat. These cables are the core of the London Internet Exchange, the key connection point between the British capital and the transatlantic cables that reach the United States.
“Giving the green light to this project is giving China a launching pad for economic warfare at the nerve center of our national infrastructure,” denounced Alicia Kearns, opposition National Security spokesperson. Kearns has been blunt: the plans show a room that runs close to the optical fibers of the City and Canary Wharf, which represents an unaffordable risk for State security.
Despite the scandal, Prime Minister Keir Starmer seems determined to give the go-ahead before his next official visit to Xi Jinping. It does so ignoring the warnings that, according to figures such as Dominic Cummings, were already issued by MI5 and MI6 about Beijing’s intention to create an “underground spy center.”
The documents reveal that the complex will be a self-sufficient fortress. In addition to the interception zone, it will have emergency generators, irrigation plants and luxury apartments for high-ranking diplomats. The design includes showers and basement rooms that would allow officials to remain underground for long periods without needing to go outside.
Alan Woodward, a security expert at the University of Surrey, calls the demolition of the basement wall an unmistakable “alarm signal.” According to Woodward, the history of intelligence teaches us that any power with the capacity to tap a wire will do so. «If they want to intercept the data, they don’t have to go far. “No one would know what happens down there,” he warns, recalling that today economic intelligence is as valuable as state secrets.
The location does not seem to be the result of chance. The site surrounds Wapping telephone exchange on three sides, a BT facility that serves hundreds of financial firms, including Lloyd’s of London. While the British Government maintains a cautious speech ensuring that the risks are “under control”, the Chinese embassy remains silent after the leak of its secret plans.
