UK to build human rights alliances - Hague

The security services must be prepared to share intelligence with countries with questionable human rights records if they are to prevent terrorism in the UK, William Hague has claimed.

Speaking to the Royal United Services Institute, the Foreign Secretary said the West faces a "stark choice" between sharing information with those countries, or being put at greater risk of an attack.

“In many cases, we are able to obtain credible assurances from our foreign partners that give us the safeguards we need and the confidence that we can share information,” Mr Hague said.

“Where this is not the case, we face a stark choice. We could disengage, but this would place our citizens at greater risk of terrorist attack, in the UK or overseas. Or we can choose to share our intelligence in a carefully controlled way while developing a more comprehensive approach to human rights adherence. This approach brings risk, but I am clear that the risks of the first option, of stepping back, are greater still.”

Meanwhile, Shadow Defence Secretary Jim Murphy said the UK must learn from its mistakes in Afghanistan and Iraq, as he set out the case for a new model of “preventative intervention” in the Middle East.

In a speech to the Henry Jackson Society this afternoon, the Shadow Defence Secretary said recent events in Mali prove the need for a greater focus on cultural understanding, conflict prevention and training across the region.

The West must not repeat the mistakes made in Afghanistan and Iraq, where coalition forces entered into conflicts despite an “almost primitive understanding” of the countries, he said.

“Mali has revealed the need for a new model of preventative intervention based on adaptable forces, coalition-building, intelligence and greater cultural understanding, seeking to avoid the heavy-footprint operations we do not want to repeat.

“We cannot afford an international deficit in preparation for threats of this nature.”

For more information
www.guardian.co.uk/world/defence-and-security