A handful of British parliamentarians, one member of the European Parliament, and about 25,000 petition-signing Britons have sent a blunt message President Obama's way, asking the White House chief to respect the country's sovereignty and refrain from making diplomatic moves to influence its upcoming vote on whether to withdraw from the European Union.
The British Parliament members hail from different parties – Conservative, Labour and Democratic Unionist – but have all joined together, along with UKIP leader Nigel Farage, to pen a letter to Obama that says, in part, "With so much at stake, it is imperative that the question of exiting the European Union is not one answered by foreign politicians or outside interests, but rather by the British people who must ultimately live with change or the status quo," Breitbart reported.
They go on: "Issues of national sovereignty must be decided exclusively by the people of the United Kingdom [and] even a passive diplomatic recommendation in the matter of our national decision will receive the opposite of the intended effect."
The letter has been sent to media in the United States, as well as to members of Congress and officials in the White House.
Breitbart reported it also: "The referendum vote is an act of democracy in its most direct form, and the question of whether or not to leave the EU is a rare political topic that is not owned by any one political party. This is a chance for the British people to choose the path of their country. Interfering in our debate over national sovereignty would be an unfortunate milestone at the end of your term as president."
And one Brit MP, Kate Hoey, said Obama needed to respect her country's sovereignty and let the process unfold as voters want.
"We felt it is important the president of the United States is aware that feelings will run high in the U.K. if he chooses to make an intervention. We have chosen to respectfully request he recognizes matters of sovereignty are best left to the citizens directly affected. We would certainly never think of visiting the United States and telling the U.S. public how to vote in an election or the amendment of their constitution," she said, Breitbart reported.
And another, Peter Bone MP, said: "Whatever the president perceives the interests of the U.S> to be it would be better for the relationship between our countries and his reputation with the British people if he kept his counsel to himself."
Almost 25,000 British citizens signed a petition to ban Obama from intervening in the referendum process. The petition needs to receive 100,000 signatures to be presented for debate in the House of Commons.