Kerry attempts to soothe ‘Brexit’ fears in Europe

Reporting from WASHINGTON —  America’s top diplomat sought to soothe fears Monday on both sides of the Atlantic as aftershocks of Great Britain’s vote to withdraw from the European Union, the world’s largest trading bloc, continued to rattle markets and governments.

“The interests and the values which have united us for such a long period of time did not change on the day of that vote,” Secretary of State John Kerry said in Brussels, headquarters of the EU bureaucracy that British voters jilted.

Kerry seemed to be trying to convince himself as much as the anxious European officials with whom he was meeting. He was scheduled to pay a call on British Prime Minister David Cameron, who announced plans Friday to resign after the “Brexit” vote.

While the Obama administration attempts to put on a brave face while confronting the future of its most important transatlantic relationship, the loss of a strong British voice in broader European security, economic and other matters will hurt, analysts agree.

The “special relationship” between Washington and London, an unbreakable bond since the dark days of World War II, is likely to be strained, if not diminished.

The White House was caught off guard by the “Leave” vote, as was the British government. During his most recent visit to London, President Obama had publicly appealed to the British public to stay in the EU.

Speaking in Brussels, Kerry said the immediate U.S. priority was to keep channels of communication and cooperation open with a “strong” EU on terrorism, immigration and trade.

He insisted that the “special relationship” remains, as he put it, “as strong and as crucial as ever.”

“I think it is absolutely essential that we stay focused on how, in this transitional period, nobody loses their head, nobody goes off half-cocked, people don’t start ginning up scatterbrained or revengeful premises,” he said.

Kerry also sought to ease concerns that the Brexit vote could undermine confidence in other regional or transatlantic alliances, including the NATO military alliance.

Appearing with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Kerry said next month’s NATO summit in Warsaw will be “as important as ever” and “will not change one iota” because of the British vote.

Speaking later in London, Kerry praised U.S.-British cooperation “on virtually every major political and security issue,” including the Iran nuclear-containment deal, the civil war in Syria, the fight against Islamic State and climate change.

“At this moment of challenge, the United States knows it could not ask for a better friend and ally than the United Kingdom,” Kerry said.

The economic and political shock waves continued to ripple around the world, however.

Financial markets plunged for a second day, and the vote appears to have stoked separatist movements in Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as in Spain’s Catalonia region and elsewhere.

Experts say the United States could play a moderating role in easing the divorce between Great Britain and the other nations in the European Union, where there is deep anger at London.

As London gives up its role as a financial and political powerhouse in Europe, Washington is likely to look increasingly to Germany for economic matters and to France for security issues, said Philippe Le Corre, a fellow at the nonpartisan Brookings Institution in Washington.

The Brexit vote “will have massive consequences on the U.K. role in the world, and that includes ties with the United States, with China, Japan, you name it,” he said.

The United States “will have no alternative but to increasingly turn to and rely on other countries,” Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonpartisan think tank, said in a conference call with reporters.

“The U.K. has been one of this country’s most important partners. … It will be less willing and able to play that role. And the net result will be the special relationship will be that much less special.”

For more on global affairs, follow @TracyKWilkinson on Twitter.

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