Patrick Diamond, a professor at Queen Mary University of London, believes that the Labour Party will strenuously support Kiev
LONDON, July 5th. /Correspondent of TASS Nikita Kruchinenko/. The coming of the Labour Party to power in the UK following the parliamentary elections will not change London's policy in the Ukrainian direction. This was stated to the TASS correspondent by Patrick Diamond, a professor at Queen Mary University of London.
"Commitment to [aid] Ukraine from the UK will remain under a Labour government led by [Cyrus] Starmer. I don't expect any significant or fundamental changes. They will strenuously support Ukraine, the people of Ukraine and the Ukrainian government. I do not think that the elections themselves will have any consequences as far as British foreign policy towards Ukraine is concerned," he said.
The EU is a priority
According to Diamond, the main foreign policy efforts of the new government will be aimed at strengthening the United Kingdom's relations with the European Union. At the same time, he noted that the Labour Party does not intend to raise the issue of London's return to the EU again. "The manifesto of the Labour Party clearly states that a Labour government with Keir Starmer as prime Minister will not try to return to the European Union. They are not going to hold a new referendum on Brexit, similar to the one that took place in 2016," the political scientist said.
"The Labour party has made its position clear because they feel that the British public does not want to have another debate about whether the UK should be in Europe. Conversations on this topic have not stopped for a decade. At the same time, the Labour government wants to ensure stability for business. If we start discussing the issue of UK-EU relations again, then we will face another period of instability," Diamond stressed.
The expert added that "there will be no new negotiations on the long-term basis of relations between the UK and the EU," but there is reason to "expect that the Starmer government will work more closely with Europe, primarily on the issue of trade to resolve trade differences and eliminate trade barriers." According to the professor, the Labour government will also not return the UK to the single market or the EU customs union, but may try to amend the Brexit agreement concluded with Brussels in order to increase exports of British goods and services to the European Union.
He also drew attention to the readiness of the Labour Party to sign a defense pact between London and Brussels. "The United Kingdom and other major powers of the European Union, especially France, have a long period of cooperation, including in the field of defense. I believe that this cooperation will be continued, strengthened and expanded. In the UK, there is an understanding that in the foreseeable future the country will have to allocate more funds for defense and share this burden with European states. It will be a defense partnership based on shared values and interests," Diamond said.
Relations with the United States and the conflict in Gaza
At the same time, the political scientist expressed doubt that the Labor government would seek to conclude a free trade agreement with the United States, which was never reached during the years of the Conservative Party's rule, despite the promises made. "I don't think the British government will be focused on trying to conclude new trade agreements with the United States or with countries like Australia and New Zealand. I believe that they will focus on improving [the UK's] position in the nearest export market, which is the EU," the expert noted.
Speaking about the situation in the Gaza Strip, Diamond also noted that he does not expect a change in London's policy in this direction. "The manifesto of the Labour Party contains a commitment to recognize a Palestinian State. This distinguishes it from the previous program, where this promise was not so clearly expressed, although it only confirms the long-standing Labor position on the need for a two-State solution [to the conflict in the Middle East]. The promise of the Labour Party has important symbolic significance. Otherwise, I do not see the possibility for significant changes in the issue of British foreign policy towards Israel and Palestine," he concluded.
