The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
‘UK and EU must stand with US on Russia sanctions’ Politics: Foreign secretary seeks tougher action
Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has spoken of the need to “rebuild the Western alliance” as he called on the EU to stand “shoulder to shoulder” with the US and consider further sanctions against Russia.
Speaking ahead of a major speech in the US, Mr Hunt said that, in the wake of the Salisbury and Amesbury attacks, he wanted to strengthen alliances.
He also praised the US for its latest sanctions against Moscow.
Mr Hunt said: “America said that within 90 days they will implement sanctions and we have to recognise that is taking things further and we have to, as Europeans, make sure we’re matching that because this happened on European soil.”
He added: “We need to strengthen and rebuild the Western alliance so that the people who are considering whether to cross red lines actually think again.”
Answering an accusation that Mr Trump’s record was one of disrupting alliances, he said the US president was, “someone who does fundamentally believe there should be a rulesbased order internationally.
“He just doesn’t think it’s working terribly well.”
Shadow international secretary Barry Gardiner spoke against further sanctions, saying they would “ratchet up international tensions”.
He said: “I don’t think it’s the right way to go; there needs to be critical engagement, there needs to be dialogue with Russia.”
Mr Hunt’s US visit follows the summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mr Trump in Helsinki that led to widespread criticism of the US leader.
In a speech at the US Institute of Peace, Mr Hunt is due to say that, under Mr Putin, Russia’s “aggressive and malign behaviour undermines the international order that keeps us safe”.
He will say: “Today, the United Kingdom asks its allies to go further by calling on the European Union to ensure its sanctions against Russia are comprehensive, and we truly stand shoulder to shoulder with the US.”
European Commission deputy chief spokesman Alexander Winterstein, asked if its president Jean-Claude Juncker still wanted to end “Russia-bashing” or favoured a tougher stance outlined by Britain, said: “The position of the president has not changed; it’s fully in tune with the position of the European Union.”