Many people believe that Great Britain is becoming increasingly self-absorbed and less willing to cooperate with the rest of the world. The country is demonstrating itself to be more distant from the European Union than that of other EU countries, and the British seem to think that they have a greater role in Syria than they actually possess.
There is a notion forming that Britain is obsessed with its past glories rather than working to enable cooperation between world powers. This view is being held by former diplomats and leading academics in growing numbers. Indeed, the British people believe that their country serves a greater purpose on the world stage than it actually does. The country believes that it is contributing, when it is actually doing very little.
Many of these views are coming out of Great Britain itself, as a report commissioned by the London School of Economics said, “Britain is sidelined in Syria, ineffective in Ukraine, unwilling in Europe and inimical on refugees. A crisis of confidence has become a crisis of identity. Whilst the world has never been more interdependent, we fail to recognize that future generations will judge us by the success we make of belonging to and making a contribution to global order.”
The authors of the paper include the former leader of the parliamentary intelligence committee, the former English ambassador to America and the former head of the British Secret Service. Instead of being self-absorbed, the authors believe that the British should help to foster global cooperation and work towards being a part of the global world order.
Simply put, they say that the world does not revolve around Great Britain. The country should embrace its status as an independent and strong state to help connect the world, instead of isolating it.
Many people believe that the country still views itself as “elite” when it comes to foreign policy and that it often does a poor job in working with outside officials. The country even has a clouded relationship with fellow members of the European Union. Instead of working towards what’s best for the EU, Great Britain often focuses on what’s best for the UK.
The level of federalism in England has gotten so high that the Prime Minister of Great Britain David Cameron has promised that a vote will take place on whether or not the British should remain in the EU by the end of 2017.
If the British were to exit the EU, it would cause the country to become even more isolated. Without the support of the EU, the UK could quickly fall off the global map.
A key issue to examine is to look at where Great Britain stands in world conflicts right now. The country has hardly any involvement in Syria, as they are not participating in airstrikes against the Islamic State. And the country was only a fringe participant during crisis talks after Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine last year.
Needless to say, the country is not a major world actor. But that hasn’t stopped the British from thinking that they still are.
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