‘PUTIN IS ENDANGERING THE WORLD’, UK WARNS
British foreign secretary on a visit to Washington calls for even harsher sanctions on Moscow and unity in bringing Iran’s malign influence to a halt
British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt has called for further sanctions on Russia and accused President Vladimir Putin of making the “world a more dangerous place”.
Mr Hunt yesterday told the US Institute of Peace in Washington that Russia had repeatedly flouted rules of international conduct, undermining world security. He also said that the world must come together to halt the “malign influence of Iran”.
“Russia’s aggressive and malign behaviour undermines the international order that keeps us safe,” Mr Hunt said. “Of course we must engage with Moscow but we must also be blunt – Russia’s foreign policy under President Putin has made the world a more dangerous place.”
Relations between Moscow and London have soured since a former Russian military officer and double agent was poisoned in the British town of Salisbury. British authorities have accused Russia of being behind the attack, a claim which Moscow denies.
“Today the UK asks its allies to go further by calling on the EU to ensure its sanctions against Russia are comprehensive and that we truly stand shoulder to shoulder with the US,” Mr Hunt said.
“That means calling out and responding to transgressions with one voice whenever and wherever they occur, from the streets of Salisbury to the fate of Crimea.”
Mr Putin was testing the world to see how united and strong it was, Mr Hunt said.
In 2014 Russia forces annexed the Ukraine territory of Crimea amid international condemnation. The strained relations have been complicated by US president Donald Trump’s apparent pro-Russia stance and public support for Mr Putin.
Mr Hunt said that Russia’s incursion into Crimea was the first annexation by force on European territory since 1945. He said it was not the Kremlin’s first step over another country’s territory this century, in reference to Georgia in 2008.
The foreign minister confirmed that the UK would continue to support a deal with Iran over its nuclear capabilities, in contrast to the US, which recently renewed sanctions on Tehran.
As a result, Iran’s economy has nosedived but its regime has also threatened to increase its nuclear operations,
Mr Hunt said Russia and the Syrian regime had ignored international rules on chemical weapons and as a result hundreds had died.
And he accused China of failing to criticise Russian actions in Crimea.
“While China has been vocal in its support for some features of the existing system, particularly elements that enable it to trade freely with the world, it has been less supportive in other areas, refusing for example to oppose Russia’s annexation of Crimea, or to support measures to strengthen the international ban on chemical weapons,” he said.
On the home front, Mr Hunt repeated that a no-deal Brexit would be devastating for Europe.
“One of the biggest threats to European unity would be a chaotic no-deal Brexit,” he said.
“The risk of a messy divorce, as opposed to the friendship we seek, would be a fissure in relations between European allies that would take a generation to heal – a geostrategic error for Europe at an extremely vulnerable time in our history.
“So, as I have been saying to European governments, now is the time for the European Commission to engage with an open mind with the fair and constructive proposals made by the prime minister.”
Mr Hunt is expected to meet UN officials including Secretary General Antonio Guterres, and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Vladimir Putin was testing the world to see how united and strong it was, Mr Hunt said