JD Vance backs Brexit voters amid anti-immigration rant at Munich conference

Independent

14-02-2025

JD Vance has backed Brexit voters during a speech in Munich in which he attacked European leaders over migration and free speech.
The US vice president stunned gathered delegates as he lashed out at governments across the continent for ignoring voters' concerns over migration and repressing free speech.
Mr Vance said he had witnessed Europe 'retreat from some of its most fundamental values' and claimed that freedom is in danger across the continent.
And he urged UK and EU leaders to stem the flow of illegal migration, adding that voters do not want the 'floodgates' open to millions.
"No voter on this continent went to the ballot box to open the floodgates to millions of unvetted immigrants," he said.
Turning to the UK, he added: "You know what they did vote for in England? They voted for Brexit and, agree or disagree, they voted for it.
"And more and more all over Europe, they're voting for political leaders who promised to put an end to out-of-control migration.
"Now, I happen to agree with a lot of these concerns, but you don't have to agree with me."
Mr Vance's speech was a departure from the usual defence focus of speeches at the annual Munich Security Conference.
He said security usually means 'threats to our external security', but that while Donald Trump is concerned with European security, the threat he worries the most about in Europe 'is not Russia, is not China, is not any other external actor'.
'What I worry about is the threat from within, the retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values, values shared with the United States of America,' he added.
Mr Vance also criticised the UK over a legal case in which a former serviceman who silently prayed outside an abortion clinic was convicted of breaching the safe zone around the centre.
He claimed a 'backslide away from conscience rights has placed the basic liberties of religious Britons in particular in the crosshairs'.
Mr Vance referred to the conviction of Adam Smith-Connor, 51, who was found guilty last year of failing to comply with the public space protection order in November 2022.
In a wider attack on what he suggested was a shift away from democratic values in Europe, he told the conference: 'A little over two years ago, the British government charged Adam Smith-Connor, a 51-year-old physiotherapist and an Army veteran, with the heinous crime of standing 50 metres from an abortion clinic and silently praying for three minutes, not obstructing anyone, not interacting with anyone, just silently praying on his own.
'After British law enforcement spotted him and demanded to know what he was praying for, Adam replied simply, it was on behalf of the unborn son he and his former girlfriend had aborted years before.
'Now the officers were not moved – Adam was found guilty of (breaking) the Government's new buffer zones law, which criminalises silent prayer and other actions that could influence a person's decision within 200 metres of abortion facility. He was sentenced to pay thousands of pounds in legal costs to the prosecution… in Britain and across Europe, free speech, I fear, is in retreat.'
The speech came before a meeting with UK foreign secretary David Lammy, at which the pair are expected to discuss Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Ahead of the meeting, Mr Lammy said he looked forward to discussing support for Ukraine and European security with the vice president.
In comments at the start of the meeting, the foreign secretary described the US-UK relationship as "more than just an alliance, it's a covenant between two partners".
He added: "We are committed to increasing defence and encourage our friends across Europe to do the same, and of course we have got important issues to discuss on Ukraine and how we support Ukraine at this difficult moment, and also broader issues of UK-US security."
Mr Vance said: "Honestly, we have a lot in common, and the special relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States will remain very strong.
"We are going to talk about something that he and I spoke about a couple of years ago, which is our shared belief that Europe really should take a big role in its own security, and I'm glad the Foreign Secretary agrees with me on that.
"I think there are other issues of common agreement, I'm sure we will talk about Russia-Ukraine."