The Conservative Cave
Current Events => General Discussion => Topic started by: thundley4 on March 28, 2010, 11:57:03 AM
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LONDON (MarketWatch) -- An influential multi-party group of British parliamentarians on Sunday called for British leaders not to speak of a "special relationship" with the U.S. because the transatlantic relationship, while still strong, is cooling.
The House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee on Sunday released a report saying its side should adopt "a more hard-headed political approach towards our relationship with the U.S. with a realistic sense of our own limits and our national interests," according to the chair of the committee, Mike Gapes.
"The use of the phrase 'the special relationship' in its historical sense, to describe the totality of the ever-evolving U.K.-U.S. relationship, is potentially misleading, and we recommend that its use should be avoided," he said of the term coined by Winston Churchill.
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair was accused during his tenure of being a "poodle" for having Britain join the U.S. in its campaign against Iraq. But the committee found areas beyond Iraq to argue that there needs to be greater distance as it alluded to a chillier tone toward the U.K. from President Barack Obama.
"The U.K. foreign policy approach this Committee is advocating is in many ways similar to the more pragmatic tone which President Obama has adopted towards the U.K.," Gapes said.
"He is an American who grew up in Hawaii, whose foreign experience was of Indonesia and who had a Kenyan father. The sentimental reflexes, if you like, are not there," added David Manning, the former British ambassador to the U.S., in testimony used in writing the report.
The Foreign Affairs Committee, which has members from all three of the country's major parties, said the U.K. has "a special relationship with the U.S., but we must remember that so too do other countries including regional neighbours, strategic allies and partners. British and European politicians have been guilty of over-optimism about the extent of influence they have over the U.S."
MarketWatch (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/british-mps-dont-call-us-relations-special-2010-03-28?siteid=YAHOOB)
The UK is throwing the US under the bus? Thanks Big Zero.
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MarketWatch (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/british-mps-dont-call-us-relations-special-2010-03-28?siteid=YAHOOB)
The UK is throwing the US under the bus? Thanks Big Zero.
Why not? The Brits are just returning the favor.
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Why not? The Brits are just returning the favor.
It took them long enough.
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I was just waiting for it to happen
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Who else is going under the bus?
Will we tell Beijing to go ahead and invade Taiwan? and the Spratleys?
Will we tell SK to go ahead and become part of the communist north?
Will we somehow piss off Japan?
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Who else is going under the bus?
Will we tell Beijing to go ahead and invade Taiwan? and the Spratleys?
Will we tell SK to go ahead and become part of the communist north?
Will we somehow piss off Japan?
everyone and yes, as long as 0bama gets to think it'll help him
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Obama the rookie strikes again.
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The life long dreams of the left are being fullfilled now. They have always wanted America to fail and to have no allies. They are doing everything they can to make it happen. It is about time Obama goes to Australia to piss them off too.
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The life long dreams of the left are being fullfilled now. They have always wanted America to fail and to have no allies. They are doing everything they can to make it happen. It is about time Obama goes to Australia to piss them off too.
If we brought Paul Hogan in to call him a wanker on youtube, do you think it would convince him that his "work" in that regard is done, and he'd move on to pissing off our long-time, trusted ally Albania? :evillaugh: