Britain | Brexit tension receding: Britain’s Sunak tightens relations with France and Germany

28.1. 19:10

London

Britain has started to strengthen its relations again with the two leading EU countries, i.e. France and Germany.

Relations suffered for years due to Britain’s departure from the EU, i.e. Brexit. The Brexit decision and the subsequent difficult divorce and trade negotiations ate up time and enthusiasm for other cooperation.

Conservative prime minister who started in October Rishi Sun too however, the government has begun to warm up relations with both France and Germany.

It is partly about the new line of the British management: Sunak is more willing to cooperate than his predecessors. However, the war of aggression waged by Russia also has an effect in the background. Europe’s big countries have even stronger and literally vital incentives to work together.

March in the beginning, Sunak travels to Paris, France for the president Emmanuel Macron as a guest.

Of course, Sunak and Macron have talked before and met, for example, in Egypt in connection with the COP27 climate meeting last November. However, the Paris negotiations are the first of their kind in many years between the British prime minister and the French president.

“This is the first between the United Kingdom and France [vastaavan tason tapaaminen] then 2018,” the Prime Minister’s spokesperson said.

At issue will be the deepening of cooperation between Britain and France in many fields. These include, for example, security and defense cooperation, climate change and energy issues, and the economy and immigration.

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According to unconfirmed media reports, the king too Charles is visiting France in March. The visit to France would thus become Charles and Camilla-the queen consort’s first official state visit.

The Daily Telegraph newspaper news in January that the royal visit is a way for the British to strengthen post-Brexit relations with France. However, Downing Street spokesmen did not want to confirm to HS whether the king is leaving for Paris and possibly at the same time as Prime Minister Sunak.

Valued London think tank Chatham House estimated in summer 2020that Brexit will not necessarily eat away at the diplomatic efforts of the E3 group – i.e. Britain, France and Germany.

The view was that Brexit does not take away the need for European cooperation. In addition, big countries know how to keep in touch even without the EU framework.

However, the still-in-progress aftercare of Brexit has cooled the gap. Britain and France have argued, among other things, about fishing. The long-term issue of illegal immigration across the Channel from France to Britain is also straining relations.

Sun too predecessors Boris Johnson and Liz Truss weren’t particularly eager to warm up the gaps either.

When from Truss, who campaigned for prime minister last August was asked, that Macron is a friend or an enemy, Truss replied that we’ll see, the “jury” is thinking about it. Truss probably meant his answer as a joke, but the throw still managed to attract a lot of negative attention. As prime minister, Truss left the playbill in and called Macron as a friend.

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Instead, Sunak is more diplomatic in his language. Sunak has a more solution-oriented approach to dealing with Brexit problems than its predecessors. Truss and Johnson often try to please the Brexit wing of the Conservative Party.

Chatham House Think Tank reviewed recently, that Sunak’s government does not feel that it benefits politically from the fact that EU relations are in a bad state. There are also no more personal conflicts between the EU and Britain.

Germany’s of the Federal Chancellor By Olaf Scholz Sunak already knows from the days when the men were still finance ministers of their countries. Scholz and Sunak have met, among other things, in connection with meetings of the G7 and G20 countries.

German Chancellor Olof Scholz and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak discussed last November in connection with the G20 leaders’ summit in Bali, Indonesia.

Britain’s and Germany’s line regarding assistance to Ukraine has been very different.

Britain has been one of Ukraine’s major armed and financial supporters since the beginning. Germany, on the other hand, teased Leopard 2 battle tanks for a long time sending decision with before Scholz finally made the desired solution in the case.

Germany’s embezzlement has also been keenly noted in Britain.

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Germany’s and Britain’s bilateral relations took a big leap forward already at the beginning of January, when the foreign minister James Cleverly hosts his German colleague Annalena Baerbock in London.

Cleverly and Baerbock launched the annual “strategic dialogue” between Britain and Germany, the goal of which is to deepen the cooperation between the two countries.

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly hosted German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock in London at Lancaster House in early January.

“Britain and Germany are the closest partners, and we will tackle common challenges based on our strong relationship,” Cleverly said after the meeting.

The foreign ministers agreed on increasing cooperation, for example in support of Ukraine and against climate change.

January one the meeting also revived the cultural cooperation body between Britain and Germany, which was already established in 1958, but which has not met since 1993.

The task of the cultural delegation is, among other things, to nurture grassroots relations.

Brexit has been criticized because it has caused friction not only in trade relations but also in cultural relations. Cultural and student exchange between Britain and EU countries has become more difficult since Britain left the EU and free movement and the common market at the same time.

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