Jeremy Hunt: the EU as the Soviet Union

BERLIN – When former British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson resigned in July, some of his foreign counterparts were probably relieved of their duties. Johnson was known for his ridicule and ridicule as deeply inappropriate by his foreign counterparts.

But as Brexit is fast approaching and an agreement on the conditions of departure is still lacking, the diplomatic sensibility that many hoped would come back after Johnson's resignation is still untraceable. In the latest incident likely to jeopardize Britain's disadvantage in continental Europe, Johnson's successor, Jeremy Hunt, provoked anger on Sunday when he compared the European Union to the Soviet Union.

"What happened to the trust and ideals of the European dream? The US has been set up to protect freedom. It was the Soviet Union that prevented people from leaving, "said Hunt in a speech delivered Sunday at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham. "The lesson of history is clear: if you turn the US. in a prison, the desire to go out will not diminish, it will grow – and we will not be the only prisoner who will want to escape. "

Mr. Brexit, former leader of the British Independence Party, Nigel Farage, proclaimed himself, and quickly asked to be credited for this comparison.

Despite its questionable historical accuracy, the USSR-USU. The comparison is also frequently used by far right populists opposed to joining the bloc. But the same comparison made by a prominent member of the British government was certainly not disappointing in the EU Member States that lost tens of thousands of people under Soviet occupation.

"Just FYI – The Soviets killed, deported, exiled and imprisoned 100,000 people in Latvia after the illegal occupation of 1940, and ruined lives for 3 generations, while the EU. has brought prosperity, equality, growth, respect, "said Latvia's ambassador to Great Britain, Baiba Braže, in response to Hunt's speech.

His outrage is widely echoed in other parts of Central and Eastern Europe. "Comparisons between the European Union and the United States are inexpensive and offensive, especially for us who have lived both. Did the Red Army force you to join? How many millions has Brussels exterminated? The gulag for asking for a referendum on independence? ", Said the former Polish foreign minister Radosław Sikorski wrote on Twitter.

Let us take the example of Latvia invaded by the Soviets in 1940. A year later, on June 14, 15,000 Latvian citizens, including more than 2,000 children, were arrested during night raids and deported to camps. of Soviet prisoners. Half of them never came back.

In all the Soviet-occupied Baltic States, Soviet prisons are still deeply associated with torture, executions and inhuman ill-treatment. Survivors then recalled sleep deprivation, exposure to extreme heat and overpopulation. Some prison cells built for half a dozen inmates housed up to 40 people.

For European leaders, the latest remarks by Hunt, a leading conservative of the mainstream, served as a further metaphor for the disconnect between British politicians and their European counterparts that has permeated the Brexit negotiations for over a year.

When British Prime Minister Theresa May addressed the European Union and her own country in mid-September after her intention to leave the EU. seems to have fallen apart, she pointed out that she had treated the US with "nothing but respect."

With hindsight, May's assurance might seem like a desperate call to his own party and to US leaders. EU. The chairman of the board, Donald Tusk, recently posted a picture of giving him a cake to May, with the caption: "A piece of cake, maybe? Sorry, no cherries. Since then, May's former Foreign Secretary, Ms. Johnson, has described her plans for Brexit as "disturbed," shortly before her successor offends much of the news. 39, Central and Eastern Europe. Europe to get a favorable deal to leave the European Union.

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