Tri-Service

Head Of US Army In Europe: "Brexit Could Threaten NATO"

A British vote to leave the EU could threaten the NATO alliance at a time of Russian aggression in the east, the head of the US Army in Europe has warned.

Lieutenant General Frederick "Ben" Hodges raised concerns that the EU could unravel in the event of a Brexit, weakening efforts to resist Russian expansionism in Europe and the Middle East.

Speaking to the BBC, LTG Hodges said the result of the referendum on June 23 is of "strategic interest". He explained:

"Anything that undermines the effectiveness of the alliance has an impact on us, and so if the EU begins to become unravelled there can't help but be a knock-on effect for the alliance also."

Out campaigners have said Britain's position in NATO would not be weakened if it chose to leave.

A former commander of British forces in Afghanistan dismissed the American general's concerns about the impact of Brexit on NATO and claimed a 'leave' vote would make the UK safer.

Retired Colonel Richard Kemp told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that leaving the EU "may have some effect, but I don't think the effect would be either catastrophic or significant - it could, in fact, be beneficial". He added:

"Britain is the strongest member of NATO next to the US and whether we are actually involved in intricate financial relationships or the ever-closer union the EU wants to achieve in political terms, I don't think that affects our position within NATO."

It was "exactly the time" for a British exit "because I think any other time is going to be too late or impossible", he continued.

"We are looking now at the EU fast-tracking Turkey into EU membership, which puts the EU borders on the frontiers of Syria, Iraq and the Islamic State. Do we want that? Do we want our borders to be extended out there? Do we want another 70 million people with the free ability to range around Europe at will?"

"I think this is exactly the moment when we should be looking at the EU and I think that, without a doubt, would benefit our defences and our security."

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Brexit-supporting Conservative MP Bernard Jenkin said:

"General Hodges seems to have forgotten that most of the EU talks the talk about European defence, but they spend too little to be capable of doing much.

"Only two EU member states actually spend over the NATO 2% of GDP target, and one of them is the UK."

Outside the EU, our 'five eyes' security and intelligence relationship will no longer be threatened by EU court judgments and EU interference."

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the Vote Leave campaign, said: "The EU undermines our membership of NATO and puts our long-term economic and democratic security at risk.

"EU judges have weakened our intelligence services and prevented Britain from kicking out terrorists' sympathisers. The EU is a backward-looking, outdated institution that is incapable of dealing with global challenges it faces. It's safer to take back control."

Asked about Lt Gen Hodges' comments, London Mayor Boris Johnson told LBC radio:

"David Richards, the former head of the British Army, thinks completely the opposite, and I happen to agree with him."

Mr Johnson said "of course" Western nations needed to stand together militarily, but added: "The vehicle for doing that is NATO, the North Atlantic alliance, and it always has been.

"One of the anxieties about the EU and its pretensions to try to create a superstate with a military arm as well is that it undermines the utility of NATO."

Former Liberal Democrat leader Lord Ashdown said: "The twin pillars of a strong United States and a united Europe have underpinned American foreign policy for decades.

"The commander of the US Army in Europe is right to say Britain leaving Europe would weaken NATO, making our country and our continent less secure and less influential in the world."

"It could not come at a more dangerous time for Europe. To our South conflicts are driving a migration crisis that is destabilising European politics, while to our East, Putin's Russia is intent on forcibly re-establishing a sphere of influence."

The executive director of Britain Stronger In Europe, Will Straw, said:

"This is a devastating blow for Leave campaigners. They like to say that the EU plays no role in keeping Britain safe, and that we need only rely on NATO."

But when the head of American forces in Europe says starkly that Britain leaving Europe would 'undermine' NATO, Leave campaigners need to recognise that cutting ourselves off from our allies will make Britain less safe."

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