Ex-UK diplomat alleges pressure in US ambassador appointment row

Former UK Deputy Foreign Secretary Olly Robbins has alleged that the office of Prime Minister Keir Starmer applied pressure to speed up a security vetting process related to the appointment of former UK ambassador Peter Mandelson to the United States.

Robbins, while giving evidence to the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, stated that attention was focused on getting Mandelson to Washington quickly, Caliber.Az reports, citing the Guardian.

He said during January, his office, the office of the Foreign Secretary, was under constant pressure, nothing there was "constant pressure.”

Robbins has submitted his resignation amid controversy surrounding Mandelson’s appointment.

The Foreign Office had approved his appointment as ambassador, despite negative recommendations from the relevant security vetting authority.

The situation is further complicated by Mandelson’s previous association with Jeffrey Epstein, who was accused of sexual offences.

According to Robbins, government officials believed an additional security review was unnecessary because Mandelson was already a member of the House of Lords, while the Foreign Office insisted that the assessment should still be carried out.

Robbins also acknowledged that he did not pass on the final results of the security review to the government, noting that he himself did not have full information at the time.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov