Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
- Author, Paul Adams
- Role, BBC News
- Report by Bydgoszcz, northern Poland
David Lammy’s first whirlwind trip as Foreign Secretary, organised at very short notice, is not intended to achieve immediate results or even to open up new horizons.
It is all about perception: the emergence of a vigorous new administration, determined to get to work quickly, brimming with goodwill towards some of the UK’s most important partners.
After an evening spent with his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock – the pair found time to watch a few minutes of England’s European Championship quarter-final – Mr Lammy’s visit continued in the bucolic surroundings of the country estate of Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorsky.
After a few hours of discussions, we were back on the plane for a short flight north to one of NATO’s newest members, Sweden.
Why Germany, Poland and Sweden?
Partly because of Ukraine. Alongside Britain, all three countries are playing a major role in supporting kyiv’s war effort. With new Defence Secretary John Healey on the ground in Odessa, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s government is keen to stress that the UK’s commitment to Ukraine will remain unwavering.
“We want to redouble our efforts to strengthen our engagement with Ukraine,” Mr Lammy said, as dragonflies circled over a tranquil lake and a pair of majestic eagles circled overhead.
France, in the midst of a presidential election that seems destined to have profound consequences, was not on the agenda. Not this weekend.
No stopover in Brussels either. Sir Keir said the UK would not return to the EU “in his lifetime”.
But Poland and Sweden are both key European partners and NATO members – good starting points for the foreign minister to explore the contours of closer future relations.
“I want to reset both our bilateral relationship and our relationship with the European Union,” Mr Lammy said, adding a reference to Labour’s still rather nebulous commitment to a new EU-UK security pact.
He said that when European leaders gather at Blenheim Palace on July 18 for the next meeting of the European Political Community (created by Emmanuel Macron following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine), “the new spirit of cooperation will be visible”.
Lammy’s concerns: Russia, China, Gaza
The trip comes just days before Sir Keir makes his first international appearance as Prime Minister at the Nato summit in Washington DC.
It is difficult to consolidate relations between the two countries, as France moves to the right and the United States may be on the verge of returning the unpredictable Donald Trump to power.
Mr Lammy acknowledged it was a “difficult geopolitical moment” but said it was important not to confuse disagreements between mature democracies with the threats posed by authoritarian regimes.
“I am worried when I see Iranian drones appearing in Ukraine,” he said.
“I am concerned when I see shells from North Korea being used here on European soil.
“And of course I’m concerned about the partnership that I see Russia negotiating with these authoritarian states.”
Other questions hang over the new foreign minister’s first trip, including the war in Gaza.
In Germany on Saturday, Mr Lammy spoke of the need to adopt a “more balanced approach between Israel and Gaza”.
It is unclear exactly what he meant, but with ceasefire negotiations appearing poised to resume, finding a way to end the Gaza war and revive the Arab-Israeli peace process appears set to consume much of diplomatic time in the months ahead.
For his part, Mr Lammy’s English-speaking host said the relatively new Polish government shared something in common with the new Starmer administration.
Both results, Mr Sikorski said, were “the result of public fatigue with the nationalist camp in politics” – a remark that may only partially reflect the true nature of last week’s general election.
Mr Sikorski said he looked forward to “a more pragmatic approach” from Britain to its relationship with Europe and said the two ministers had discussed “some creative ideas about how to take this relationship forward”.
