Sarkozy's suggested joint trip to Libya to Cameron
- Published
- comments
The two leaders in discussion at the G8
"President Sarkozy is always full of good ideas."
That's how an exasperated David Cameron reacted to the news that the French president had announced that he wanted to make a joint trip with the prime minister to the rebel capital of Libya - Benghazi. Given the security implications involved you can understand why Downing Street is not keen to discuss the idea. They did not, though, reject it.
He denied that another president - Dmitry Medvedev of Russia - had offered to mediate with Colonel Gadaffi.
It came at the end of a summit at which the prime minister hailed a package of support for countries of North Africa and the Middle East and made a passionate defence of his commitment to keep increasing Britain's overseas aid budget in the face of the opposition of the Daily Mail. "People want Britain to stand for something in the world" he declared reminding one normally calm observer of the scene in the movie "Love Actually" in which "Prime Minister" Hugh Grant makes a passionate plea.