REVEALED: Inside most expensive embassy in the world: US £750million fortress near Thames
THE United States has revealed the very first images of its new £750million embassy in London.
US Ambassador to Britain Woody Johnson released the images of the most expensive embassy in the world.
The state-of-the-art building will be officially opened in February by US President Donald Trump when he visits the UK.
The US State Department ran a competition to design the new building in 2008.
Its $1 billion construction was wholly funded by the sale of other properties in London.
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he new embassy is a signal to the world that this special relation that we have is stronger and is going to grow and get better
The embassy features a circular bar with outstanding views over London as well as a sculpture by the British artist Rachel Whiteread of a typical home in the United States built in the 1950s.
Boasting 12 floors, the embassy is double the size of the previous stone and concrete embassy in Grosvenor Square with 518,000 square feet of space.
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The embassy is designed to exacting security specifications, set back at least 100 feet (30 metres) from surrounding buildings - mostly newly-erected high-rise residential blocks -and incorporating living quarters for the US Marines permanently stationed inside.
The building, based near Vauxhall, boasts a moat between the building and the River Thames to ensure the building remains safe.
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It has taken four years to build and has been designed to reduce the impact of peak energy demands to reduce its environmental impact.
The opening of the new building will be the start of a “diplomatic quarter” as the Dutch and Chinese embassies are set to move to the area too.
The embassy is at the heart of a huge regeneration project in a former industrial zone known as "Nine Elms".
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Set in what will become an urban park, it will open for business on January 16, hosting 800 staff and about 1,000 visitors each day.
When he unveiled the building, Woody Johnson said the embassy was a ‘signal to the world’ that the special relationship between the UK and US was as strong as ever.
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Mr Johnson said: “President Trump wants to work more closely than ever with the UK and it will make both of our countries more prosperous and secure.
“So the new embassy is a signal to the world that this special relation that we have is stronger and is going to grow and get better.
“We are looking forward to welcoming the president when he comes over here.
“I think he will be very impressed with this building and the people who occupy it.”
Although the US is a close ally of the UK's, relations have been strained after Theresa May publicly criticised the US President for reposting videos posted by Britain First from his Twitter accounts.
He responded by telling the Prime Minister to focus on Islamic extremism in Britain.
