U.K. Foreign Secretary Says Russian Support of Assad Hurts Fight Against Islamic State
05 October 2015 - 12:10PM
Dow Jones News
MANCHESTER, England—Russia's support of Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad would ultimately hurt the fight against Islamic State,
U.K. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said, underscoring the
complications of Russia's military involvement in the Syria
crisis.
Mr. Hammond, speaking Sunday at the main annual conference of
British Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative Party, said the
U.K. was open to working with Russia in Syria, but that Russian
President Vladimir Putin's government couldn't fight Islamic State
but support Mr. Assad. Russia recently began striking targets in
Syria in support of Mr. Assad's government, marking a major
escalation in its involvement in the crisis.
"Russian support for him will drive the opposition in Syria into
the arms of ISIL, strengthening the evil that Putin says he wants
to defeat," Mr. Hammond said, using an alternative name for Islamic
State. He said the U.K. would continue to lead the push in Europe
for maintaining tough sanctions on the Russian government for its
aggression in Ukraine.
Russia says its actions in Syria are aimed at fighting
terrorists and preserving the country's territorial integrity.
The Conservative Party conference, in Manchester, marks the
first time the leadership has addressed party members since Mr.
Cameron won a general election in May and achieved the center-right
party's first parliamentary majority in 23 years.
But Mr. Cameron and his government faces many challenges,
including the situation in Syria and Iraq. Earlier Sunday, Mr.
Cameron said Russia's decision to take military action in Syria to
support Mr. Assad was a "terrible mistake."
"It's going to make the region more unstable; it will lead to
further radicalization and increased terrorism." Mr. Cameron told
the British Broadcasting Corp. "I would say to them change
direction, join us in attacking ISIL but recognize that if we want
to have a secure region, we need an alternative leader to
Assad."
Another key issue for Mr. Cameron is Europe, an area where his
party is deeply divided. He has promised British voters to secure
concessions ahead of a referendum on whether the U.K. should remain
in the European Union. He has said he wants Britain to remain part
of a reformed EU but some in his party want an exit.
Mr. Cameron and his treasury chief, George Osborne, also have
the politically tricky task of finding further areas to cut
government spending to fulfill a pledge to continue to reduce the
U.K.'s budget deficit. Thousands of people gathered in Manchester
on Sunday for a march against the Conservative Party's austerity
policies.
Mr. Osborne is due on Monday to announce plans to boost
investment in Britain's infrastructure, according to aides. The
Treasury chief plans in his speech to say that the government will
spend an extra £ 5 billion on projects in the next five years on
top of the £ 100 billion already planned, and will set up a
National Infrastructure Commission to advise the government on what
needs to be built. He will also announce plans to pool the pension
savings of British local government workers into half a dozen
"wealth funds," which will allocate a portion of their assets to
infrastructure investment.
Jason Dean contributed to this article.
Write to Jenny Gross at jenny.gross@wsj.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 04, 2015 20:55 ET (00:55 GMT)
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