Ousted Myanmar Envoy Charged Over London Residence Standoff

In a dramatic turn tied to Myanmar’s ongoing political crisis, the country’s former ambassador to the UK, Kyaw Zwar Minn, has been charged with trespass after refusing to vacate his official London residence.

The 66-year-old diplomat will appear before a London court on 30 May, the Metropolitan Police confirmed on Wednesday. He faces a charge of diplomatic trespass, following a protracted dispute that began in April 2021 when allies of Myanmar’s ruling military junta seized control of the embassy in central London.

Minn had openly supported the civilian government of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, which was ousted by a military coup in February 2021. In retaliation, the junta stripped him of his position, barring him from entering the embassy. Despite this, Minn reportedly remained at the ambassadorial residence, asserting his loyalty to Myanmar’s elected government.

The former Conservative government in the UK voiced support for Minn at the time. Then-Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab condemned what he called “bullying actions” by Myanmar’s military regime and praised Minn’s “courage” for standing against them.

Minn’s legal team maintains that the property belongs to the Union of Myanmar and that their client has been willing to hand over the keys — but only to a legitimate representative of the country’s democratically elected leadership.

The 2021 coup triggered a brutal internal conflict, displacing more than a million people and straining Myanmar’s ties with Britain, its former colonial ruler.

It remains unclear whether Minn is still residing at the contested property, but the legal proceedings suggest a deepening of the diplomatic fallout from a coup that continues to reverberate globally.

-2025-05-16