Former UK PM John Major warns of dangers if US does not stand by allies
Published: 2:08am, 17 Feb 2025 A world in which the United States does not support its allies will be 'rather more dangerous', former British prime minister John Major warned. He said democracy is under threat and 'tin-pot dictators' would be emboldened if US President Donald Trump rushes into a peace deal that leaves Russian President Vladimir Putin in control of Ukrainian territory. And he said if the US 'retreats towards isolation' it would leave the door open for China and Russia to wield increased influence.
'There's no doubt in my mind that the world is changing and that it's reshaping, that it may not be reshaping in a way that's congenial to the West and that it's a very unsettled time indeed,' Major said. Speaking to the BBC's The World This Weekend , he said: 'The president's phone call to Putin, in which we learned that negotiations to end the war would start immediately. There had been no consultation with Ukraine or anyone else. 'He then made concessions to Russia, which I think is fairly unprecedented, having made perfectly clear that the US troops would not defend Ukraine, that Russia might be able to keep land that Putin had taken by force, that Ukraine would not be able to join Nato . 'These were all unilateral remarks from the present administration in the United States to the world.
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