Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

William Hague warns Europe on Libya mission

Pa
Wednesday 25 May 2011 11:16 BST
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Foreign Secretary William Hague today warned European diplomats against interfering with British responsibilities in Libya, saying there was a danger of "mission creep".

Mr Hague also slapped down European foreign policy chief Baroness Ashton for demanding a 5.8% budget increase for the External Action Service - the EU's new diplomatic wing.

And he insisted the relationship between the United States and other Nato countries was working well, while Britain was still deciding whether to send Apache helicopters into action against Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's forces.

Asked about the role of the External Action Service, the Foreign Secretary told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "We will always guard against mission creep.

"We are very clear about what's a UK responsibility and what is an External Action Service responsibility.

"I am certainly giving a pre-emptive warning. Where we have seen one or two instances of it, we have dealt with that but we will always be vigilant about that."

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in