After Brexit, Lithuania seeks to preserve ally against Russia

Lithuania, which looked to Britain to help toughen the EU line on Russia, said Monday it wanted the European Union to preserve all that it could from its ties with London after the ‘Brexit’ vote.

“We would like to preserve what is not yet destroyed, what is possible to preserve,” Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius told reporters at the United Nations.

The foreign minister said while there was a need for “clarity” after Britain’s vote to leave, Lithuania, for one, was not “rushing to expel Britain.”

France and Italy have urged Britain to move quickly to the exit, but Germany and others have taken a more cautious stance.

Linkevicius expressed worries that “the voices of the more principled positions will be weaker” within the European Union when it comes to dealing with Russia.

His remarks came ahead of an EU meeting this week that is expected to roll over economic sanctions that were imposed against Russia after Moscow annexed Crimea and sent troops to back separatists in east Ukraine.

Moscow denies it is supporting the separatists.

France and Germany have called for a shift in the approach to sanctions toward Russia, but Britain has maintained a hard line, saying there should be no let-up without progress on ending the conflict in Ukraine.

Linkevicius criticized EU states that advocate a “more pragmatic and flexible” approach to sanctions against Russia as “very counter-productive” and said the response to ineffective sanctions should be “more sanctions.”

The foreign minister said he had discussed Britain’s vote to leave the European Union with his counterparts from the Baltics and the Nordic countries, who all agreed that there should be a “civilized process” for new relations.

He described Britain as a “strategic ally” to advance security, human rights and democracy in Europe.

Poland’s right-wing politician Jaroslaw Kaczynski earlier Monday said he would like to see Britain hold a second referendum on EU membership.