Prince Andrew's close 'confidant' has been accused of being a Chinese spy

Prince Andrew has been out of the public eye since he was forced to step down as a working royal by his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth, in 2020. The Duke of York was also stripped of his honorary military titles and patronages.

When Charles became King, he allegedly gave his brother an allowance, but reports suggested he ended the financial support earlier this year.

Once again, the disgraced Duke is in the spotlight due to a relationship with a Chinese businessman, who has been accused of being a spy. In a secret hearing, it was disclosed that the Chinese businessman and Prince Andrew had a close relationship.

Who is the Chinese businessman accused of being a spy?

AChinese businessman known as H6 has been accused of being a spy. H6 was a junior civil servant in China and reportedly had a close relationship with Prince Andrew.

As revealed in a secret hearing, H6 was permitted to act on Prince Andrew’s behalf when dealing with potential investors in China. The Telegraph reports thatcontents from H6’s mobile showed that the Duke of York authorised him to set up an international financial initiative known as the Eurasia Fund to engage with potential partners and investors in China.

The contents reportedly states:

I also hope that it is clear to you where you sit with my principal and indeed his family. You should never underestimate the strength of that relationship … outside of his closest internal confidants, you sit at the very top of a tree that many, many people would like to be on.

Moreover, H6 was invited to celebrate the Duke’s birthday in 2020.

Due to the timing of their relationship, it was claimed that Prince Andrew may have been ‘vulnerable’ to H6’s influence. Indeed, their working relationship started when the Duke was being pressured over his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

It was said, during the hearing, per The Telegraph:

The applicant won a significant degree, one could say an unusual degree, of trust from a senior member of the Royal family who was prepared to enter into business activities with him.

That occurred in a context where, as the contemporaneous documents record, the Duke was under considerable pressure and could be expected to value the applicant’s loyal support.

It is obvious that the pressures on the Duke could make him vulnerable to the misuse of that sort of influence.

Why is H6 accused of being a spy?

As mentioned above, H6 has been accused of being a spy. As a result, in July 2023, the Home Office decided to ban the 50-year-old from the UK.

The Telegraph reports that MI5 decided he was an agent who had engaged in ‘covert and deceptive activity’ for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), therefore he posed a threat to national security. According to Daily Mail, the accused spy worked for the CCP’s United Front Work Department, which gathers intelligence. Moreover, the threat was accentuated due to his alleged ‘close’ relationship with the Duke of York.

H6 tried to challenge the ruling, however, a special immigration commission ruled that Suella Braverman, who was the home secretary at the time, was justified in her decision. Mr Justice Bourne, Judge Stephen Smith and Sir Stewart Eldon said:

The secretary of state was entitled to conclude that the applicant represented a risk to the national security of the United Kingdom and that she was entitled to conclude that his exclusion was justified and proportionate.

The Home Secretary had deemed that H6 was in a position to create relationships between prominent UK figures and senior Chinese officials ‘that could be leveraged for political interference purposes’.

It has also been claimed that the accused spy ‘downplayed’ his relationship with the Chinese state, per The Telegraph.

For now, H6’s identity will remain a secret until the High Court makes a decision at a later date on whether or not reveal it.

The scandal has come at a crucial time for the Royal Family, who are preparing their Christmas celebrations and a big question is looming over King Charles—will he invite his controversial little brother to join?

Prince Andrew is known for keeping bad company

Prince Andrew’s alleged relationship with the accused spy isn’t the first time his friendships have been called into question.

As many know, Prince Andrew had connections with Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted paedophile. This relationship is what initially caused the Duke’s downfall due to his disastrous Newsnight interview, where he claimed he hadn’t been friends with the convicted paedophile.

Epstein is not the only one on the list. As per Tatler, the Duke of York hosted a lunch at Buckingham Palace for Sakher el-Materi in 2011. Sakher el-Materi was a billionaire businessman and son-in-law of the now-removed Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

Sakher el-Materi was convicted of several offences, including embezzlement and misuse of state funds, possession of illegal drugs and weapons, and corruption.

Prince Andrew has also kept ‘bad company’ closer to home. Indeed, his ties with British financier David ‘Spotty’ Rowland have been deemed controversial. According to Tatler, Rowland has faced criticism to due his former status as a tax exile.

Moreover, it has been said that he provided £40,000 so that Sarah Ferguson could pay off her debts. He also reportedly allowed the Duke of York to use his £40 million luxury jet while carrying out royal duties.

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Sources used:

The Telegraph: ‘Revealed: Prince Andrew’s links to Chinese ‘spy’ banned from UK’

Daily Beast: ‘Desperate’ Prince Andrew Sought Money From Alleged Chinese Spy’

Daily Mail: ‘Prince Andrew adviser is banned over fears he's a 'Chinese spy': Businessman was his 'close confidant' and 'invited to his birthday party' - now he' barred from the UK’

Tatler: ‘A short history of Prince Andrew’s more scandalous moments’