Boris Johnson gets stinging slap down by Theresa May after he accuses Saudi Arabia of ‘playing proxy wars’ in the Middle East
Foreign Secretary publicly accused UK ally of abusing religion and acting as a puppeteer, but No10 said it was "not the UK's view"
BORIS Johnson was given a stinging slap down from Theresa May after humiliating the PM with an attack on Saudi Arabia while she conducted a charm offensive with the Gulf state.
As the PM returned from meeting the King of Saudi, footage emerged of the Foreign Secretary accusing him of “playing proxy wars” in the Middle East, opening another Cabinet split.
In an unprecedented public assault on a supposedly friendly nation, Mr Johnson lumped the state in with Iran accusing them of “puppeteering” in the region and “twisting and abusing religion”.
His unguarded comments left the government red faced just hours after Mrs May told the Saudis they were one of “our oldest and most dependable allies” and emerged as Mr Johnson also headed to the region.
Hitting back yesterday No10 said the Foreign Secretary’s comments at a conference in Italy were his own personal view and did not reflect Government policy.
Mrs May’s official spokesman also noted that Mr Johnson will have the opportunity to set out the official policy - of Britain’s desire to strengthen its ties with Saudi Arabia and support for its military involvement in Yemen - when he travels to the desert kingdom for talks on Sunday.
But Mr Johnson’s spokesman insisted that he had stressed this policy when making the comments and “any suggestion the contrary is completely wrong.”
Mrs May spoke with King Salman of Saudi Arabia during her visit to the Persian Gulf this week, and told him of “her commitment and that of her Government to enhancing and strengthening this relationship”.
But as the PM and her entourage were flying back to Britain, the Guardian published footage of Mr Johnson’s comments to the Med2 conference in Rome last week, where said Saudi Arabia were “puppeteering” in the Middle East.
Mr Johnson said: “There are politicians who are twisting and abusing religion and different strains of the same religion in order to further their own political objectives. That’s one of the biggest political problems in the whole region.
“And the tragedy for me - and that’s why you have these proxy wars being fought the whole time in that area - is that there is not strong enough leadership in the countries themselves.”
The Foreign Secretary said there were not enough “big characters” in the region who were willing to “reach out beyond their Sunni or Shia” group.
He told the conference: “That’s why you’ve got the Saudis, Iran, everybody, moving in and puppeteering and playing proxy wars.”
Last night Labour’s Shadow Foreign Secretary blasted Mr Johnson’s “shabby hypocrisy.”
Emily Thornberry said: “For months, Labour has been arguing that what last year began as a UN-backed attempt to restore the government of Yemen has now descended into a brutal and indiscriminate proxy war, and a desperate humanitarian crisis, with the lives of hundreds of thousands of children at risk.
“That argument has consistently been rejected by Boris Johnson in the House of Commons, but now these remarks in Italy have shown us what he really thinks.
“The government cannot complain about Saudi Arabia’s military actions one minute, then continue selling it the arms to prosecute those actions the next.”
Lib Dem MP Tom Brake hit out: “Boris Johnson has now been slapped down almost as many times as Baldrick in Blackadder.
“He’s right to criticise Saudi Arabia’s record, but will be deservedly branded a hypocrite if he now toes the government line this weekend.”
But last night Tory MEP Daniel Hannan leapt to Mr Johnson’s defence, saying: “Everyone knows that Boris has a point about Saudi Arabia.”
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