The US Ambassador to Britain Woody Johnson has shown off his new £750 million embassy building in south London.
The structure is believed to be the most expensive embassy building in the world and features state-of-the-art security systems.
The new building is expected to be officially inaugurated on February during President Donald Trump’s working visit to the UK.
This is the stunning new riverside embassy building constructed by the US government at a cost of £750 million
The US Embassy is moving from its existing location on Grovesnor Square, pictured, which has deemed as less than secure
The 800 staff at the US Embassy will move into the new building in Nine Elms in the new year ahead of Donald Trump’s visit
The US State Department announced the competition to design the 12 storey building back in 2008
The new building is designed to make the most of of space and natural light to encourage ‘transparency and openness’
Ambassador Woody Johnson said the new £750m building was a ‘signal to the world’ that the special relationship is as strong as ever.
He said he would like to have President Trump at the Embassy’s official opening in February.
He 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 relationship that we have is stronger and is going to grow and get better.
‘He mentioned that to me himself … He said “I want you to make it stronger”, and I intend to do that if I can.’
Ambassador Woody Johnson, pictured, said he hoped President Donald Trump will attend the Embassy’s official opening
Ambassador Johnson open the Embassy today for a special tour in advance of his staff moving in next month
Ambassador Johnson said Grovesnor Square had been home to the US in some form for 200 years
He added: ‘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.’
Flanked by the American and UK flags, Mr Johnson spoke eloquently about the embassy’s attachment to the former site, which he said had been home to the US in some form for 200 years.
For more than half a century, the embassy has been located in the Grade II-listed London Chancery Building in Grosvenor Square, Mayfair.
But the diplomatic mission is moving across the River Thames to the new 12-storey cube-shaped building in Vauxhall, and will formally open on January 16.
Construction on the 12-storey building has taken four years and will replace the existing embassy on Grovesnor Square which will be sold off as a hotel.
The old Embassy was built in 1960 of stone and concrete, although Grovesnor Square was known as ‘Little America’ during World War II and was home to the military headquarters of General Dwight D Eisenhower.
The U.S. State Department ran a competition to design the new building in 2008. It described the embassy as ‘a physical manifestation of the long-term commitment to the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom’.
According to the US State Department, the building has been funded by the sale of other property in London
A spokesperson for the embassy said the glass structure ‘gives form to the core democratic values of transparency’
Among one of the features at the US Embassy is this circular bar with stunning views overlooking the London skyline
The glass structure ‘gives form to core democratic values of transparency, openness and equality’ a State Department briefing document said. Its £750m construction was wholly funded by the sale of other properties in London.
The British-U.S. relationship has been tested in recent months.
Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May was the first foreign leader to visit the White House after Trump’s surprise election in November 2016.
While the two leaders have committed to strengthen trade links and spoken regularly, their governments have disagreed on several issues, such as Trump’s decision to decertify Iran’s compliance with a multilateral nuclear deal, and his move to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Earlier this month, May publicly criticised Trump for reposting British far-right anti-Islam videos from his Twitter accounts. He responded with a rebuke, telling May to focus on Islamic extremism in Britain.
The new building is expected to open next month with the first staff moving into the building early next month
The 518,000 square foot building is the first embassy in Nine Elms which is likely to become a new diplomatic centre
The building has been designed to minimise its impact on the environment and has been fitted with solar panels
The Embassy has been designed to reduce the impact of peak energy demands to reduce its environmental impact
According to the US Embassy, the architect Kieran Timberlake design had to consider environmental as well as security concerns when building the structure.
According to the Embassy: ‘Energy and environmental design issues have been balanced with the overall project goals of openness, diplomacy, functionality, security and value. Employing technologies that use alternative energy sources and reduce peak energy demand and overall energy consumption represents a commitment to sustainable design. These strategies also provide enhanced occupant comfort which has been shown to contribute to better functionality and productivity by improving employee satisfaction.’
The building will have solar power as well as natural gas fueled combined heating and a biomass heating scheme providing heat to the surrounding community.
This sculpture by British artist Rachel Whiteread depicts a typical home in the United States built in the 1950s
The building also features a great deal of light which it is hope will make it a more pleasant working environment
A wall inside the Embassy building shows the names of all the former ambassadors from the United States
The building has magnificent views over the River Thames from its new location in Nine Elms
People waiting for consular assistance and visa applications will wait in this lobby inside in the new Embassy building
Ambassador Johnson said President Trump viewed Britain as his gateway into Europe and wanted to improve relations