LONDON-British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said Thursday that quitting the European Union did not mean “leaving Europe”, as he brushed off criticism of his appointment in Prime Minister Theresa May’s new Brexit government.
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In a sign of the difficulty Mr Johnson may face in building bridges with opposite numbers around the world, French foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault told Europe 1 radio: “I am not at all anxious about Boris Johnson, but you know his style, his method during the campaign. So I don’t know what you’re talking about”. He lied a lot to the British.
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop (pic) has welcomed Boris Johnson as the new British foreign secretary.
Earlier Thursday, European Parliament chief Martin Schulz blasted the Cabinet picks of new British Prime Minister Theresa May as part of a “dangerously vicious cycle” that will hurt Britons in the long run.
Mr Johnson, who was appointed to the senior diplomatic post yesterday by new Prime Minister Theresa May, will be expected to represent the United Kingdom overseas and oversee relations with the wider world in his new role.
During the Brexit referendum, Johnson was one of the leading voices of the successful campaign for Britain to leave the European Union. “It’s a big nation that will take over a big portion of burden from Europe”, he said.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, speaking Wednesday, shortly before the news of Johnson’s appointment, said he was outraged by Britain’s “irresponsible politicians who first lured the country into Brexit, then. got out, refused to take responsibility, and went to go and play cricket”.
“The secretary and Foreign Secretary Johnson agreed that the US-UK special relationship is as essential as ever”, State Department spokesman John Kirby says.
Former energy and climate change secretary Amber Rudd has been promoted in May’s new Cabinet as home secretary, the portfolio previously held by May herself, with Eurosceptic David Davis being made in charge of a brand new department for Exiting the European Union and being dubbed “Brexit minister”.
In their first telephone conversation, Kerry offered his congratulations to newly appointed Johnson in the top British diplomatic post.
Mr Johnson’s drawing of parallels between the EU’s aims for a united Europe and that of Hitler has not been forgotten in European capitals. It is a shrewd tactic, but one that will be sorely tested by the pressures that lie ahead for Britain’s new prime minister.
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One problem: Johnson has a wild history of making stunningly undiplomatic comments about world leaders – the people he will now have to work with. And previous year he said: “The only reason I wouldn’t visit some parts of NY is the real risk of meeting Donald Trump”. He will now be responsible for global trade, and will therefore be asked to prove with deeds his previous claims that Britain’s economy can thrive outside the EU. Several senior figures in the former government of David Cameron have been fired as May puts her stamp on the government.
