The Green MP for Brighton Pavilion has criticised the Prime Minister for going “going cap in hand to another murderous tyrant” by flying to the Middle East today (Wednesday 16 March).
Caroline Lucas made her remarks in the House of Commons as other MPs asked about Boris Johnson’s trip just days after Saudi Arabia executed 81 people.
She spoke after the former Conservative chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Crispin Blunt, put down an urgent question on Monday (14 March).
Despite some MPs’ reservations, and criticism from human rights campaigners, Mr Johnson arrived in the United Arab Emirates this morning.
He is due to hold talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed in Abu Dhabi before flying to Riyadh to meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia.
The PM said that he was trying to end the West’s “addiction” to Russian oil and gas, with Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine about to enter a fourth week.
He hopes that the Gulf states will step up their production as part of the effort to starve Moscow of its income from fossil fuels.
But the Brighton Pavilion MP was not alone in criticising Mr Johnson for meeting the Saudi crown prince.
He has largely been shunned by the west since 2018 after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi which he is accused of having ordered.
In the Commons, Caroline Lucas asked Foreign Office Minister Amanda Milling: “Does she not see any contradiction between rightly ending dependence on Putin’s Russia for fossil fuels and then seeking to replace them by going cap in hand to another murderous tyrant, who executes his own people and to whom we sell arms that are being used to kill civilians in Yemen?
“Is she aware of reports in the US that Saudi Arabia is pressurising President Biden to repay access to oil by supplying more military support for its war in Yemen?
“Can she assure us that this Government would not tolerate a ‘more arms for oil’ deal with that murderous regime?”
The minister replied: “In terms of energy, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, we are having to phase out Russian oil, which is absolutely the right thing to do.
“It is important that all partners work together to ensure the stability of the markets.”
Earlier she said: “We are shocked by the execution of 81 individuals … The United Kingdom strongly opposes the death penalty in all countries and in all circumstances, as a matter of principle.”
She added: “The UK’s relationship with Saudi Arabia is of great importance, ranging from national security to economic interests but the nature of that relationship does mean that we can speak frankly about human rights.
Perhaps if we had more energy independence then we wouldn’t need to trade abroad? If only we could use some of our own oil and gas rather than importing it. In the medium term, renewables are the answer. But in the short term, they can’t be – particularly without practical power storage.
So we need gas and oil to keep the lights on and people warm. Without this huge numbers would die. Energy security was given as a reason for fracking. Yet Ms Lucas and others campaigned against it. They succeeded – and that is part of the reason why we are in this situation. So if Ms Lucas wants to assign blame, then a mirror would be a start. The greens in Germany (in the coalition government) are now turning to coal and nuclear to fill the gap – they understand that compromises have to be made to keep people alive now. Perhaps Ms Lucas could reflect on that…