The British authorities have banned entry into the country, for reasons of national security, to one Chinese businessman, who had formed close ties with prince andrew and was authorized to act on his behalf and seek investors in China.
The 50-year-old Chinese man, who was looking for investors at the behest of Prince Andrew, whose name has not been revealed but is only referred to as H6, was forced off a flight from Beijing to London in February 2023. He was then told that the Britain intended to ban him from entering the country, which happened the following month.
H6 appealed to the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC), which however rejected it today (12/12/24) and, for the first time, his relationship with the prince has been revealed. Buckingham Palace is no longer commenting on Andrew, who will step down from royal duties in 2022.
Reuters was unable to reach a representative for comment.
The decision to ban the Chinese businessman was made after authorities examined the contents of his mobile phone when he was stopped at the border in 2021 under anti-terrorism legislation. According to the Appeals Committee, it was then revealed that Prince Andrew had authorized him to set up an international financial initiative and work with potential partners and investors in China. The decision does not state what purpose this joint venture would serve.
Documents found on his phone suggest H6 “deliberately concealed his links” with the Chinese Communist Party and the United Front Work Department (UFWD) and was able to cultivate relationships between prominent UK figures and Chinese officials , which Beijing could exploit. The UFWD is a network of groups that Chinese President Xi Jinping has described as a “magic weapon” to promote Beijing’s influence abroad.
SIAC’s ruling revealed a letter from a senior adviser to Andrew to H6, dated March 2020. It said H6 had been invited to the prince’s birthday party in the same month. “I also hope it has become clear to you where you stand in relation to my boss and his family (…) Never underestimate the power of that relationship (…) apart from his closest confidants, you are at the top of a tree where many, many people would like to be,” he said in this letter.
The 64-year-old prince is eighth in line to the throne and was the UK’s trade ambassador between 2001-11. He was forced to retire from public office in 2019 after revelations of his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, the businessman who was accused of trafficking and sexually exploiting minors and killed himself in prison. Andrew denied the charges against him, but in 2022 the royal family stripped him of his military titles and royal patronages.
SIAC’s decision refers to a 2021 document recovered from H6’s mobile phone, which records the key points of a telephone conversation between the Chinese businessman and Andrew. H6 reportedly writes that the prince “is in a desperate situation and will take anything”.
Judge Charles Bourne said in his ruling that H6 had gained the trust of a senior member of the royal family to a “significant, even unusual degree”. He also notes that the prince was under pressure at the time and for that reason could become “vulnerable” to such influences.