Obama dead against a Brexit

Barack Obama has clearly warned the British against leaving the EU. During a visit to London he intimated that there would be no swift bilateral trade agreement between the UK and the US in the event of a Brexit. While some commentators strongly criticise the intervention, others hope the Brits will listen to the US president.

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Daily Mail (GB) /

US would never join the EU

US President Obama is pushing the Brits to stay in a relationship that his own people would never accept, The Daily Mail writes indignantly:

“By arguing that a Britain outside the EU would be at the 'back of the queue' for a trade deal, to Number 10’s delight, Mr Obama displayed contempt for voters and left little doubt that he sees the special relationship as a one-way street. ... Will he not admit that the US wouldn’t agree in a million years to join a body like the EU, putting the Supreme Court in Washington under the thumb of foreign judges? Or that freedom loving America wouldn’t tolerate for a second the statist edicts spewing daily from Brussels? Why, then, does he abuse the UK’s hospitality by urging Britons to remain in a relationship his own people would never countenance?”

Göteborgs-Posten (SE) /

Brexit a bad idea in times of major uncertainty

The British should listen to President Obama and remain in the EU, Göteborgs-Posten advises:

“An EU in which political decisions are taken far away from the people will always have legitimacy problems. Such considerations should never be dismissed by those in favour of the EU. Nevertheless a Brexit would be the wrong move at a time when the Russian neighbour is becoming increasingly aggressive and international terrorism is claiming innocent lives in Paris and Brussels. As long as threats from outside and inside Europe go on seeking to destabilise its democracies, Europe must show that it is capable of cross-border cooperation. Among other things that includes exchanging information between intelligence services and carrying out joint missions against terrorist cells.”