John Baron MP: Obama is right over Libya

MP again describes Libya as a shambles

The Atlantic recently published an interview with President Obama, in which he was critical of European Governments, Britain and France in particular, over the Libyan intervention and the lack of subsequent political engagement. Since the intervention in 2011, fighting in Libya has continued, with rival governments establishing themselves at opposite ends of the country. In the same interview, the President also stated meeting the NATO threshold of spending at least 2% of GDP on defence was essential for Britain to maintain the ‘special relationship’ with the United States.

John Baron MP was the only Conservative, and one of only 15 MPs, to vote against British involvement in Libya in 2011. He also opposed the Coalition Government’s defence reforms, and campaigned hard for the Government to at least meet the NATO threshold.

John said,

“President Obama is right that Libya is a shambles. We did not understand the complexities of the situation, or how events would play out post-conflict. This lack of knowledge has once again caused a worse situation, including the presence of extremists such as Daesh, as well as an immigration crisis.”

“I also completely agree with President Obama on the UK’s defence spending. We should be spending much more than 2% on defence, given global uncertainties, yet we continue to try to get defence on the cheap – whilst DFID is awash with cash.”