LONDON: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Thursday that now was not the time to lift sanctions against Russia, speaking after a meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and other leaders in Paris.
Starmer met leaders of countries involved in the so-called ‘coalition of the willing’ to discuss strengthening Kyiv’s position and what role the coalition might play if a peace deal is struck with Russia.
“There was absolute clarity that Russia is trying to delay, is playing games, and we have to be absolutely clear about that,” Starmer said, standing alongside Zelensky.
“And that has meant three outcomes. Firstly, more support for Ukraine to make sure Ukraine is in the strongest possible position.... Second, complete clarity that now is not the time for lifting of sanctions, quite the contrary.”
He also said the group discussed military and operational plans for the coalition of the willing.
UK’s Starmer: Now is not the time for lifting sanctions
https://arab.news/44cfv
UK’s Starmer: Now is not the time for lifting sanctions
- Starmer met leaders of countries involved in the so-called ‘coalition of the willing’
- “There was absolute clarity that Russia is trying to delay,” Starmer said
Pull him off TV: Steve Bannon shuts down Sen. Lindsey Graham
- Trump’s former chief strategist called for the senator to be registered as a foreign agent
DUBAI: Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon called on Tuesday for US Senator Lindsey Graham to be registered as a foreign agent of the Israeli government, escalating a growing conservative backlash against the senator’s vocal support for Israel.
Speaking on his podcast “War Room,” Bannon said Graham should be “pulled off of television,” adding: "This is dangerous… because you have guys like Lindsey Graham and dozens more that are doing the wrong thing.”
In a Fox News interview on Monday, Graham said: “To all the antisemites, to all the isolationists… I’m not with you, I’m with Israel, I will be with Israel to our dying day.”
Graham also urged Gulf Arab states to join military action against Iran. “What I want you to do in the Middle East, to our friends in Saudi Arabia and other places, [is] step forward and say, ‘this is my fight too, I join America, I’m publicly involved in bringing this regime down,’” he said.
In a post on X, Graham questioned the value of a US defense agreement with Saudi Arabia following the evacuation of the American embassy in Riyadh, writing: “Why should America do a defense agreement with a country like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that is unwilling to join a fight of mutual interest?”
Faisal Abbas, editor-in-chief of Arab News, responded to Graham’s comments in a Sky News interview, saying: “He flip flops so much, it’s actually entertaining.”
“On one hand, he says he will never set foot in Saudi Arabia. The next day, he’s here signing multimillion-dollar deals.”
“I don’t think anyone here takes him seriously,” Abbas added.
He warned Graham to be careful what he wished for: “Do you really want Saudi Arabia involved in this war putting our oil facilities at risk or do you want us stabilizing the energy markets?”
Graham pressed further, warning that inaction would carry a price. “Hopefully Gulf Cooperation Council countries will get more involved as this fight is in their backyard. If you are not willing to use your military now, when are you willing to use it?”
“Hopefully this changes soon. If not, consequences will follow.”
Graham's remarks drew sharp criticism from Bannon and others including podcast host Megyn Kelly.
She questioned on X whether Graham was overstepping his authority as a senator, writing: “When did Lindsay Graham become our president?”
Kelly also said Graham had threatened Lebanon, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, the wider Arab region, and Spain within a 24-hour period.
The problem with Graham “isn’t (just) that he’s a homicidal maniac, it’s that Trump likes and is listening to him,” she said in another post.
