The British government has urged Myanmar's former ambassador to leave the official London residence where he has continued to live since he was ousted for criticising last year's military coup, citing pressure from the junta, reports Reuters.

Kyaw Zwar Minn was locked out of his embassy last April by his own staff after calling for the release of Myanmar's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, arrested alongside most of her government in coup.

Since his ouster from the embassay, Kyaw Zwar Minn has stayed at the northwest London residence, a mansion surrounded by razor wire and CCTV cameras, refusing to hand it back to the embassy which he says is now run by representatives of an illegitimate government, Reuters reports.

"We are under considerable pressure from the military regime to resolve the issue of your continued presence in the Myanmar Residence," a senior foreign office official said in an email sent to Kyaw Zwar Minn on 4 March and seen by Reuters.

The emails from the UK government, dating back to October, repeatedly urge Kyaw Zwar Minn to leave the house, saying his presence there poses legal problems for Britain and risks to its staff in Myanmar.

The NGO Myanmar Accountability Project claims the house Kyaw Zwar Minn is staying in belongs to the people of Myanmar, not the illegitimate Myanmar junta.

Kyaw Zwar Minn says he will only hand the house over to a “legitimate Myanmar government”. This could include the National Unity Government (NUG) if it was officially recognized by the UK government.