:00:00. > :00:00.BBC conducted an exclusive interview where Barack Obama discussed the
:00:00. > :00:07.UK's special relationship with the United States, and also his wife
:00:08. > :00:10.Michelle. It is fair to say
:00:11. > :00:14.your visit has created a stir, People say, "OK, we have a special
:00:15. > :00:21.relationship, yet that could involve The special relationship is not
:00:22. > :00:31.contingent on any particular issue. There are emotional and cultural
:00:32. > :00:37.and commercial and strategic bonds between our two
:00:38. > :00:41.countries that are unmatched by any As a practical matter,
:00:42. > :00:50.what we are doing with respect to trade is negotiating with big blocks
:00:51. > :00:53.of countries. Negotiating trade deals are
:00:54. > :01:14.difficult and challenging. We recently completed a deal in the
:01:15. > :01:25.Asia-Pacific region. Our next step is to try to negotiate and EU -
:01:26. > :01:32.inactivate agreement, and the point I was simply making is that for
:01:33. > :01:36.those who suggested that if we could not be entangled with the Europeans,
:01:37. > :01:42.our special relationship is going to mean that we can cut the line and
:01:43. > :01:45.get a quick deal with the United States and it would be a lot more
:01:46. > :01:49.efficient, and that is not how we think about it. I don't think that
:01:50. > :01:52.how the next ministration will think about it because our preference
:01:53. > :01:58.would be to work with this large block of countries. The more central
:01:59. > :02:05.argument that I was making is that it is our belief that a strong
:02:06. > :02:11.United Kingdom helps the United States because we are so close. As I
:02:12. > :02:19.indicated yesterday, it is my firm belief, I think backed up why the
:02:20. > :02:25.evidence, that a United Kingdom which is in the EU will have more
:02:26. > :02:29.influence, better leveraged on its viewpoint or effectively, and that
:02:30. > :02:33.will benefit jobs and businesses here in the UK.
:02:34. > :02:36.It is the phrase "back of the queue" which has offended some people
:02:37. > :02:40.Was that the intention? No.
:02:41. > :02:43.It was simply a response to the argument that I've heard from
:02:44. > :02:46.others who are proposing to leave the EU that somehow America would be
:02:47. > :02:52.able to do things more quickly with the UK than if they were in the EU.
:02:53. > :02:56.I was indicating that would not be the case in this narrow issue
:02:57. > :03:28.Let's say Britain leaves and attempt to negotiate a trade deal,... My
:03:29. > :03:29.simple point is that it is hard to negotiate trade deals. It takes a
:03:30. > :03:33.long time. The UK would not be able to
:03:34. > :03:36.negotiate something with the We would not abandon
:03:37. > :03:42.our efforts to negotiate a trade deal with our largest trading
:03:43. > :03:47.partner, the European market, but rather it could be five years
:03:48. > :03:51.from now, ten years from now before So maybe not right to the back
:03:52. > :04:00.of the queue, I think the broader point is that
:04:01. > :04:08.if you are interested in trade, we are on the cusp of getting a trade
:04:09. > :04:15.deal done with the European Union. If I am a business person or a
:04:16. > :04:19.worker in Britain, and I'm looking at the fact that I already have
:04:20. > :04:24.access seamlessly with a massive market, one of the wealthiest
:04:25. > :04:30.markets in the world, that accounts for 44% of my exports,
:04:31. > :04:35.the idea that I will be in a better position to export and trade
:04:36. > :04:43.by being outside of that market and not being in the room setting the
:04:44. > :04:48.rules and standards by which trade You have been very clear,
:04:49. > :04:56.the special relationship is more Trade is important,
:04:57. > :05:01.but it is much more than that. We have been focusing
:05:02. > :05:03.on intelligence-sharing, given the real threat from terrorist groups
:05:04. > :05:08.around the world. Is it possible to say today that
:05:09. > :05:11.if there were an exit from the EU, those elements of the special
:05:12. > :05:15.relationship would not be affected? They would not be affected
:05:16. > :05:37.in the sense that our intelligence We also have to make sure that
:05:38. > :05:48.continental Europe is safe in order to keep us safe. The fact that the
:05:49. > :05:53.UK is involved in conversations about how we upgrade information
:05:54. > :06:02.sharing in on parental Europe, the influence that it has in debate in
:06:03. > :06:04.Europe around how we approach intelligence, law enforcement, how
:06:05. > :06:13.we break down some of those things that prevent us preventing the kind
:06:14. > :06:19.of horrific crimes we have seen in Brussels and Paris, together we will
:06:20. > :06:25.be less effective than we are currently worthy get this great
:06:26. > :06:33.ally, who engages in unmatched cooperation with us in the room
:06:34. > :06:38.negotiating it, things as simple as making sure that passenger lists are
:06:39. > :06:45.shared. It took a lot of years for us to be able to negotiate that with
:06:46. > :06:50.the European Parliament and the EU. Our strongest advocate for getting
:06:51. > :06:57.that done was the UK, and it was extremely helpful. That in turn
:06:58. > :07:02.makes us both safer because it is not as if by exiting the EU you are
:07:03. > :07:09.going to stop terrorists from travelling from Europe to the UK any
:07:10. > :07:14.more than we are going to stop Europeans from visiting the United
:07:15. > :07:19.States. For all of those people watching trying to calibrate the
:07:20. > :07:23.arguments you have offered on several levels, if they are
:07:24. > :07:27.wondering, OK, if there is a British exit from the EU, how will have the
:07:28. > :07:36.macro that have the biggest impact on the racial chip, what will be the
:07:37. > :07:39.most noticeable impact? It is the impact that it has on the UK that is
:07:40. > :07:46.relevant, not on the special relationship. On the bond? The bond
:07:47. > :07:49.between our two countries is not breakable. The issue is that
:07:50. > :07:57.precisely because we share so much, we see the world through such a
:07:58. > :08:04.common prison. We want to make sure that our partner, one of our most
:08:05. > :08:08.important partners in the world, if not the most important partner,
:08:09. > :08:12.maximises its leveraged and power, and that is the core of my argument.
:08:13. > :08:18.Our ability to do things together will not be changed.
:08:19. > :08:21.What we do believe is that the United Kingdom will have less
:08:22. > :08:24.influence in Europe, and as a consequence, less influence
:08:25. > :08:29.globally, and since we rely heavily on the UK as a partner globally,
:08:30. > :08:42.on a whole range of issues, we like you having more influence.
:08:43. > :08:47.We like you being at the table being able to influence other countries
:08:48. > :08:50.who may not be able to always see things as clearly, from our suspect
:08:51. > :08:52.this, as our British partners. Some people watching
:08:53. > :08:55.put a much higher price on the bond They will say, "The President is
:08:56. > :08:59.very clear, the special relationship will not be damaged by any decision
:09:00. > :09:03.on coming in or out of the EU. If that is the case, we should not
:09:04. > :09:07.be concerned about coming out." That is how they will
:09:08. > :09:09.probably relay the argument. If the countries closest to you
:09:10. > :09:21.that care about you the most, the countries with whom you co-operate
:09:22. > :09:26.most frequently, those who you have a special relationship with, are
:09:27. > :09:30.suggesting to you that you might be better off staying
:09:31. > :09:50.in this relationship with Europe, Ultimately there is going to be a
:09:51. > :09:55.decision for the British people to make, and we respect that. But, in
:09:56. > :09:59.the same way as in our personal lives, if we are making a big
:10:00. > :10:06.decision, we should probably pay attention to the people who we have
:10:07. > :10:09.counted on, who we have stood by, who we have a history with. We
:10:10. > :10:14.should pay attention when they say, I think this is the right thing to
:10:15. > :10:21.do. My hope is that this is something that would have some
:10:22. > :10:24.influence on how voters think. I don't anticipate that anything I
:10:25. > :10:28.have said will change the position of those leading the campaign in one
:10:29. > :10:31.direction or another, but for ordinary voters I thought it would
:10:32. > :10:36.be relevant to hear what the president of the United States, who
:10:37. > :10:43.lives the British people and cares deeply about this racial chip, has
:10:44. > :10:46.to say. Can we talk about the remaining nine months of your
:10:47. > :10:47.presidency because you clearly still have big ambitions and you made that
:10:48. > :10:50.clear in your meeting earlier today. There is a sharp focus again
:10:51. > :11:04.on some of the really dangerous If you eyebrows were raised when you
:11:05. > :11:10.expressed frustration regarding how some European leaders have responded
:11:11. > :11:18.to the challenge in Libya. I think we were all distracted. That portion
:11:19. > :11:22.of my comments, I'm sure got attention here. What may be got less
:11:23. > :11:29.attention was my statement that one of my regrets is not fully
:11:30. > :11:34.anticipating the degree of concentration and focus that would
:11:35. > :11:39.be required after the campaign to make sure that Gaddafi was not
:11:40. > :11:43.killing his own people in Libya, so this was something I think we all
:11:44. > :11:47.share some collective responsibility for. I continue to believe it was
:11:48. > :11:54.the right thing to do. Had we stood by passively, Gaddafi would have
:11:55. > :11:59.killed enormous numbers of his own people and Libya would have been
:12:00. > :12:05.embroiled in a continuing war that would have been even more disruptive
:12:06. > :12:11.and damaging. But, what is also true is that we now have to focus on that
:12:12. > :12:15.country stabilising itself and having a government that can
:12:16. > :12:24.actually function and we can interact with. This government is
:12:25. > :12:29.beginning to come together, and prior to coming here I was in Saudi
:12:30. > :12:35.Arabia, where many of the entries I was meeting with had had influence
:12:36. > :12:40.with various factions within Libya, and my message to them was, give
:12:41. > :12:44.this government a chance. Isolate the extremists, allow moderates from
:12:45. > :12:48.all the various groups to come together. It is in all of our
:12:49. > :12:54.interests that Libya has a functioning state, and we should be
:12:55. > :12:57.less concerned at this point with perfection in Libya, and more
:12:58. > :13:00.concerned with sounding something up where people can provide basic
:13:01. > :13:05.services, we can begin training their police and border security. It
:13:06. > :13:12.has enormous ramifications over the long-term for Europe. It speaks to
:13:13. > :13:17.one part of the migration crisis that has been taking place, but also
:13:18. > :13:22.it is a critical component of our overall campaign to defeat Isil. If
:13:23. > :13:27.your range of options in Libya includes a monetary option of some
:13:28. > :13:30.kind, are you concerned in the European context, for example, that
:13:31. > :13:33.the parliament has shown little appetite to be engaging in that way.
:13:34. > :13:39.How would that affect your thinking in terms of the options you have?
:13:40. > :13:46.Syria has been a heartbreaking situation of enormous complexity. I
:13:47. > :13:51.don't think there are any simple solutions to Syria, and those who
:13:52. > :13:56.pretend that there are probably have not been paying a lot of attention
:13:57. > :14:04.to the details. It is my view that it would be a mistake for the United
:14:05. > :14:08.States, or Great Britain, or a common nation of Western states, to
:14:09. > :14:17.send in ground troops and overthrow the Assad regime. But I do believe
:14:18. > :14:21.that we can apply international pressure to all the parties,
:14:22. > :14:27.including Russia and Iran, who is essentially are propping up Assad,
:14:28. > :14:33.as well as those modern oppositions that exist and may maybe fighting
:14:34. > :14:39.inside Syria, to sit at the table and broker a transition. That is
:14:40. > :14:46.difficult, and in the interim, we continue to strike Isil target in
:14:47. > :14:50.places like Raqqa, and to try to isolate those portions of the
:14:51. > :14:56.country, and lockdown those portions of the country that are sending
:14:57. > :15:00.fighters into Europe. There is going to be a military component to this
:15:01. > :15:05.to make sure that, even as we try to bring an end to the Civil War, we
:15:06. > :15:08.are also engaging in the counterterrorism activities that are
:15:09. > :15:15.necessary. In order for us to solve the long-term problems in Syria, a
:15:16. > :15:19.military solution alone, and certainly ask deploying ground
:15:20. > :15:22.troops, is not going to bring that about.
:15:23. > :15:24.There are plenty of voices in Europe who would say part
:15:25. > :15:27.of the reason Europe has been facing such a big migration crisis
:15:28. > :15:30.is the lack of assertive response or engagement, not least from the US.
:15:31. > :15:39.You can't say, "We don't want to do anything in Syria,
:15:40. > :15:43.our Parliament won't ratify any actions in Syria,
:15:44. > :15:52.but we want the US to do something about it."
:15:53. > :15:58.One of the challenges during my presidency is to encourage
:15:59. > :16:01.everybody to recognise that whether we like it or not,
:16:02. > :16:07.This relates to Brexit, Nato, the migration crisis, counterterrorism
:16:08. > :16:13.efforts, public health issues like Ebola virus, which is a problem
:16:14. > :16:18.in the United States where people have debates about immigration from
:16:19. > :16:23.places like Mexico - it would be tempting for a lot of people to
:16:24. > :16:27.believe we can pull up the drawbridge and carve a moat around
:16:28. > :16:38.ourselves and not have to deal with problems around the world.
:16:39. > :16:48.But we don't have that luxury, and if these problems are transnational
:16:49. > :16:52.in nature, then they require a transnational response, and it
:16:53. > :16:57.requires us to build international institutions and support regional
:16:58. > :17:01.and international structures that are not perfect, can often be
:17:02. > :17:05.frustrating, by definition require us to then take into account, well
:17:06. > :17:09.here is what the French think on that, and here is what the Germans
:17:10. > :17:13.think on this or the Japanese, they may not always align perfectly with
:17:14. > :17:20.our views about what we think needs to be done. On the other hand, in
:17:21. > :17:23.the absence of such cooperation and alliances, we are far weaker, and we
:17:24. > :17:27.won't solve these problems. That is true in Syria, but it is also true
:17:28. > :17:30.with a whole host of other issues we will deal with for decades to come.
:17:31. > :17:33.Lots of us have followed with great interest and enjoyment a major
:17:34. > :17:35.documentary series here on British television, Inside Obama's White
:17:36. > :17:46.You convey the frustration with being unable to
:17:47. > :17:50.deliver some things principally because of Congress's attitude.
:17:51. > :17:54.For the last nine months that you have, what, realistically, would you
:17:55. > :17:58.say to our viewers you can achieve, possibly not in a legislative sense,
:17:59. > :18:09.There are a couple of things that have international ramifications.
:18:10. > :18:12.The Paris agreement around climate change is a huge achievement,
:18:13. > :18:19.So I will be making sure the next nine months that I am working with
:18:20. > :18:25.other leaders internationally to put that into full force and effect.
:18:26. > :18:30.Prosecuting the campaign against Isil is critical, and although I
:18:31. > :18:36.don't anticipate in the next nine months it will be finished, because
:18:37. > :18:41.unfortunately even a small pocket of extremists, if they are prepared to
:18:42. > :18:48.die themselves, can still wreak havoc on our cities.
:18:49. > :18:54.But I think we can shrink the environment in which they
:18:55. > :19:02.operate and take on strongholds like Mosul and Raqqa that are the
:19:03. > :19:10.There is some wonderful work we're doing internationally on public
:19:11. > :19:13.health, building from what happened with Ebola virus and now Zika virus
:19:14. > :19:18.in Latin America, trying to create public health structures in
:19:19. > :19:22.countries around the world, recognising that that is not just
:19:23. > :19:27.charity, it is in our self interest, because disease might rise rapidly
:19:28. > :19:31.in a globalised world, and we have a chance in the next nine months to
:19:32. > :19:33.have a global health security infrastructure,
:19:34. > :19:40.We have something called Power Africa, where we are trying to use
:19:41. > :19:45.the private sector resources and private capital to help electrify
:19:46. > :19:49.a subcontinent that has been growing very rapidly but still lags
:19:50. > :20:06.There are a range of things internationally,
:20:07. > :20:08.including an agreement on a trade deal with the EU, which
:20:09. > :20:12.may not get ratified by Congress before I leave, but if we have that
:20:13. > :20:15.done, the next president can pick that up rapidly and get that done.
:20:16. > :20:19.This whole myth of lame-duck so far has not proved to be the case.
:20:20. > :20:26.I won't get everything done, but I will get a bunch done that will make
:20:27. > :20:41.Being driven around by the Duke of Edinburgh,
:20:42. > :20:47.which is a courageous thing, and the First Lady at your side.
:20:48. > :20:50.Give us a sense of what the First Lady has
:20:51. > :21:00.I can't separate anything I have achieved from the partnership I have
:21:01. > :21:10.First and foremost, she is the best mother I know, and my daughters are
:21:11. > :21:23.So I can take very little credit beyond executing some
:21:24. > :21:29.of the plans she has, but she is also proving to be an extraordinary
:21:30. > :21:34.public figure in her own right in a very difficult job,
:21:35. > :21:38.because the First Lady does not have clear and defined roles.
:21:39. > :21:43.What she has been able to do in changing first the conversation
:21:44. > :21:47.in the United States and globally around children's health issues and
:21:48. > :21:50.childhood obesity, and now what she is doing with the emphasis on girls'
:21:51. > :22:02.education and making sure that our policies are aligned with
:22:03. > :22:06.the basic wisdom that countries that do not educate their girls and
:22:07. > :22:17.I could not be more proud of her, and I think it is fair to say that
:22:18. > :22:41.anything good I have done, she gets a share of the billing.
:22:42. > :22:49.She is not somebody who has access to millions of staff and billions of
:22:50. > :22:55.dollars, and yet she has changed how people think of these things. I
:22:56. > :22:58.could not be more proud of her. Anything good that I have done, she
:22:59. > :23:00.gets a share of the billing. Mr President,
:23:01. > :23:03.a great honour to talk to you.