Liam Fox: defence deals with Moscow are unwise

Photo: Liis Treimann / Postimees

Russians need to be protected by the laws of the countries they dwell in and not by Russia, underlined recent British Defence Secretary and current ruling Conservative Party MP Liam Fox in interview to Postimees while in Tallinn yesterday for a speaking engagement.

What do you think: had the current scenario in Ukraine been foreseen in 2004, would NATO still have agreed to receive the Baltics into the alliance?

I do believe so, as NATO is an alliance composed of two elements. On the one hand, it’s a military alliance and in my opinion the Baltic States clearly shared the very same thinking as related to collective defence. Secondly, NATO is a values-based political alliance. The Baltics definitely shared these values.

Regarding states which fulfilled both criteria as obviously as the Baltics, I think it was almost certain all the time that they’d be accepted. Right now, we are having the problem that certain potential candidates are having difficulties with their military capabilities or with territorial disputes or elements of the civil society.

You mentioned territorial disputes: would that mean that by grabbing Southern Ossetia and Abkhazia, Russia has essentially succeeded in indefinitely pulling a brake on Georgia joining NATO?

No, I do not believe that as, in my mind, these are not disputes regarding international law. These, clearly, are Georgian territories. Probably, these issues are problematic; but I do not think that they would necessarily obstruct Georgia on its way to NATO.

On the other hand, reversing the question: are we willing to accept something which would essentially be a Russian veto on NATO membership? I believe many of us would consider that totally unacceptable. 

What do you think, will Georgia finally get its NATO Membership Action Plan at the alliance’s autumn summit in Wales?

I don’t know. That depends on the overall balance of views. I personally support that.

Do you think the current level of NATO presence in this region [here] is sufficient? 

Yes, I think it is currently sufficient and a substantial statement has been made by bringing these troops. But I would question these actions while Europe is exporting defence technology into Russia. I think it’s honest to say that while we spend more on our security, it is not reasonable to export defence technology which may increase the threat towards us.

How much does the British public care about the events in Ukraine and Russia?

In the British media, this is having a huge amount of attention. Over these past years, relations between the UK and Russia have generally been cool, starting with the murder of Mr Litvinenko. Therefore, I would say the British media and public were less surprised, probably, by Russia’s behaviour in Ukraine.

Too much of NATO has let wishful thinking replace critical analysis when it comes to Russia; they have been observing a certain behaviour pattern surface, and have found justifications to each separate event even while events on the actual timeline reveal an obvious direction.

Today (yesterday – edit) your Foreign Secretary William Hague is in Kiev. What, if anything, can NATO and the EU states do for Ukraine right now?

Firstly we can help vitalise them financially, which is what the International Monetary Fund is busy doing right now. They will need to be supported throughout the entire elections period so they’ll return to powers fully elected by the people, so that we’d be able to deal with people who clearly stand for the entire country. And thereafter we will need to show that for us Ukraine is a sovereign state and no one may come from outside and just grab pieces of their land.

For me, the most important issue is for us not to treat Ukraine only in the framework of regional security, but as a matter of principle for international law.

People of Russian nationality are protected by the laws of the countries where they dwell. Should we, even for a moment, set this principle aside and tell President Vladimir Putin that these people are protected by an outside force i.e. Russia, we would have lost everything that the world order is built upon since WW2.