David Cameron has rejected suggestions that Britain is on the margins of the EU after François Hollande and Angela Merkel embarked on a joint peace mission to Kiev and Moscow.
The prime minister welcomed the Franco-German initiative and pointed out that Britain had “led the charge” within the EU on imposing tough sanctions on Russia.
Asked whether Britain’s absence from the talks showed that it was now a semi-detached member of the EU, Cameron said the talks were taking place within the established framework of discussions between Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine.
He said: “I welcome what are known as the Normandy format meetings with the Germans, the French, the Ukrainians and the Russians. I think it is sensible for those talks to go ahead.”
Cameron was speaking in Leeds at the launch of the Yorkshire phase of the government’s economic “northern powerhouse” scheme. He insisted Britain had played a key role in driving through sanctions against Russia and then maintaining EU unity.
He said: “What Britain has done is led the charge in Europe for very strong and tough and consistent sanctions against Russia. I think Britain has helped to hold together a coalition of countries including of course the Baltic states and Poland but also everyone in the EU. That has put through surprisingly tough sanctions against Russia and done that in a way that has been co-ordinated with the US.
“That has brought pressure to bear. You can see that effect on the Russian economy combined with the lower oil price. There is real pressure being brought to bear so that Russia changes direction. I wish the talks well today. We will continue to play that key role in the EU in keeping the pressure up and we keep the pressure on.”
