ThoseBritish royal family –
Prince Andrew embroiled in Chinese espionage case
Accused by MI5 of being a danger to “national security”, the businessman Yang Tengbo had become one of the close friends of the brother of King Charles III.
Tristan of Bourbon– Correspondent in the United Kingdom
Published today at 7:35 a.m.
Prince Andrew, Duke of York, leaving St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, after attending Easter Matins, March 31, 2024.
AFP/JUSTIN TALLIS
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- Prince Andrew is linked to controversial Chinese businessman Yang Tengbo.
- The latter is suspected of working for Chinese services, which he denies.
- Letters suggest he had privileged access to the royal family.
- Downing Street expresses fears over growing Chinese influence.
Prince Andrew is definitely a bad guy. After being associated with the pedophile and pimp Jeffrey Epsteinthe brother of King Charles III is involved in a espionage case. He is said to have become close to Chinese businessman Yang Tengbo, banned from entering British territory by the Home Office in March 2023, after MI5, the counter-espionage service, concluded that he posed “a danger to the country’s national security.”
Arriving in the United Kingdom to learn English in 2002, at the age of 28, Yang Tengbo completed a master’s degree at the University of York the following year. In 2005, he founded a consultancy company through which he established “links between British and Chinese companies”, as he explained in a press release published Monday evening. “My activities have helped attract hundreds of millions of pounds of investment to the UK.”
Particularly on the part of China Minsheng Investment Group. He claims to love his host country, where he spent one to two weeks per month, “like [sa] second house. I would never do anything that would harm the interests of the United Kingdom.” In 2013, he received permanent resident status in the country.
Businessman Yang Tengbo, suspected of espionage.
DR
“He will cling to anything”
How close was he to Prince Andrew, whose birthday he attended in 2020? Several letters recovered from his computer and phone after their confiscation in November 2021 by British customs officials outline the outline of their relationship.
“Apart from the closest internal confidants [du prince]you are at the top of a tree on which many, many people would like to be,” one of the Duke of York’s advisors wrote to him. “With your advice, we found a way to get those affected in and out of Windsor House without anyone noticing.” If no details are provided on the identity of these people, this message is disturbing to say the least.
Perhaps even more worrying for the Secret Service, a letter preparing for a call with Prince Andrew lists some advice: “IMPORTANT: Manage expectations. It is very important not to set expectations too high – it (ndlr: Andrew) is in dire straits and will cling to anything.” Since his television interview in November 2019 about his possible sexual relationship with a minor, the Duke of York was in fact under pressure, almost banned from the royal family, from which he no longer received substantial financial assistance. Which obviously made him an easy target.
The honeymoon is over
In a letter written to Yang Tengbo on March 23, 2023, the secret services judge that he works directly on behalf of the Chinese state, and more specifically for the United Front Work Department, responsible for gathering on behalf from the Chinese Communist Party of information and support abroad, in particular in order to carry out international influence campaigns. An accusation that the businessman completely refutes in his press release published Monday and against which he appealed, considering himself a “victim” of the change in the “political climate”.
For several years, the British political leadership has indeed been very critical of the Chinese state, having welcomed Chinese investments and Chinese leaders with open arms. In 2015, Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron took the president and general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, Xi Jinping, to the pub, while his successor Theresa May was applauded by the Chinese media for not having raised the issue of human rights. the man during a visit to China in 2018.
On Monday, the Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the government “is concerned about the challenges posed by China”. MP Iain Duncan Smith also recalled that the parliamentary committee on security and intelligence assured last year that “the Chinese state had penetrated all sectors of the British economy, in particular by spying, stealing intellectual property , influencing and shaping our institutions. Earlier this year, two British parliamentary assistants aged 29 and 32 were arrested for spying for China. If they deny any involvement, their trial will be held in the fall of 2025.
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