London (dpa) – A confidant of Prince Andrew is not allowed to enter Great Britain because he is considered a Chinese spy. A court in London upheld a government decision from 2023.
The brother of King Charles III. had appointed Prize as his adviser and promised him connections to the royal family, the Times newspaper reported. The suspected spy was invited to the 64-year-old's birthday party at Windsor Castle in 2020 and was authorized to look for investors in China on Andrew's behalf.
“Extremely embarrassing case”
The security politician Tom Stimmehat from the Conservative Party called the case “extremely embarrassing” on the BBC. Buckingham Palace declined to comment, pointing out that Andrew is not a “working royal” and does not appear on behalf of the royal family.
“H6”, as the man is called, objected to the entry ban. An appeals committee has now rejected this. The Chinese Foreign Ministry rejected the allegations. The People's Republic firmly rejects the use of “espionage” to denigrate China, it said. Beijing calls on the “concerned side” to stop political maneuvers against China.
Andrew is the black sheep of the royals
Andrew still has close ties to China from his time as the British government's trade envoy from 2001 to 2011. Because of his involvement in the abuse scandal involving US entrepreneur Jeffrey Epstein, he is considered a black sheep of the royals and rarely appears in public.
The suspected spy had gained “a significant, one might even say unusual, level of trust from a senior member of the royal family who was willing to enter into business activities with him,” Judge Charles Bourne emphasized in his ruling. The Duke of York was under great pressure because of his difficult private situation. “It is clear that the pressure on the Duke could make him vulnerable to abusing this type of influence.”
© dpa-infocom, dpa:241213-930-316752/1
