UK urges US, Europe to stand up to Russia, restrain Putin

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt is expected to address an audience at the US Institute of Peace. Photo: AFP

“Established international norms of behaviour are repeatedly flouted by major powers such as Russia,” Mr Hunt is expected to say in Washington in his first major policy speech since succeeding Boris Johnson in July.

“Such aggressive and sinister behaviour undermines the international order that keeps us safe,” Mr Hunt will tell an audience at the US Institute of Peace, according to excerpts provided by the Foreign Office. “Of course we must engage with Moscow, but we must also be frank: Russia’s foreign policy under President Putin has made the world a more dangerous place.”

London has blamed Moscow for the March poisoning in southwest England of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with a Soviet-era nerve agent, plunging relations between the two countries into a diplomatic crisis.

Many Western countries have punished Moscow by coordinating the expulsion of Russian diplomats, and some have gone further with other sanctions.

These moves come after sanctions were imposed after Russia's annexation of Crimea and accusations of Russian interference in foreign elections, especially the 2016 presidential election in the US.

Hunt is due to meet US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on August 22 and will urge London's allies to do more.

According to the content quoted by the British Foreign Office, Hunt will emphasize: “Today, the UK is asking allies to go further by calling on the European Union to ensure that sanctions against Russia are comprehensive, and that we truly stand shoulder to shoulder with the United States.”

“That means coming together and speaking with one voice to respond to violations wherever and whenever they occur, from the streets of Salisbury to the fate of Crimea,” the senior British diplomat is expected to say.

The Trump administration has taken a tough line on Moscow, often announcing new sanctions related to the Skripal case, but that message has sometimes been overshadowed by Mr Trump’s apparent willingness to improve relations with Mr Putin.

At a July summit with the Russian leader in Helsinki, Finland, Trump appeared to strike a conciliatory tone toward his Russian counterpart, not long after attacking opponents at a NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium.

This has caused the US President to face widespread criticism at home, even angering many members of his own Republican Party.

For the British Foreign Secretary, NATO’s “credibility” has been damaged. He will warn: “Those who do not share our values ​​must know that there will always be a serious cost for crossing red lines – whether that is territorial aggression, the use of banned weapons, or, even worse, cyber attacks.”