Prime Minister and Defence Secretary are pleased to confirm Chief
of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin will be extended in
his post until autumn 2025.
Defence Secretary said:
Admiral Sir Tony Radakin has the expertise and leadership we need
in an increasingly dangerous world.
I’m pleased he will remain as Chief of the Defence Staff and I
look forward to continuing our work together to keep our nation
and our allies safe and secure.
From our support for Ukraine to security in the Red Sea, we’re
committed to ensuring our Armed Forces have what they need as
they defend our interests and support our prosperity.
Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin
said:
I am grateful for the opportunity to continue as Chief of the
Defence Staff. The abiding impression from my first
two-and-a-half years in post is the quality of our people,
alongside the strength of the United Kingdom’s network of allies
and partners. This has enabled the Armed Forces to serve our
nation’s interests time and again, from our early and pivotal
role supporting Ukraine, the evacuation from Sudan, our
magnificent contribution to the Coronation, and the ongoing
defence of international trade in the Red Sea.
This is a critical time for Europe, and the world. President
Putin is desperately hoping the West loses interest in Ukraine,
and it is vital we prove him wrong. Ukraine’s heroic resistance
is sending a message to autocrats everywhere that aggression does
not pay. Having just returned from visiting Kyiv, I am even more
convinced that if we stick together and stick with Ukraine, Putin
will fail, Ukraine will win, and the values we cherish in the
world will endure.
I want to use the coming years to continue modernising the
British Armed Forces, learning the lessons of Ukraine by
strengthening our nuclear enterprise, recapitalising the British
Army and our stockpiles and being much more ambitious in
embracing drones and other technology. Most of all, I want to
help streamline and focus the Ministry of Defence, unlocking the
potential that exists for our military and civilian personnel to
make an even bigger contribution to the security and prosperity
of the nation.
The Chief of the Defence Staff is the professional head of the
Armed Forces and the principal military adviser to the Defence
Secretary and the Prime Minister.
Admiral Sir Tony Radakin has been in post since November 2021,
and his time in post to date has been dominated by efforts to
shape the international response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
He regularly meets with his counterparts in Kyiv, Washington and
Brussels and he has worked alongside the Defence Secretary to
coordinate military assistance to Ukraine and to strengthen the
United Kingdom’s contribution to NATO.
Prior to his appointment as Chief of the Defence Staff, Admiral
Sir Tony Radakin was First Sea Lord (Head of the Navy) for two
and a half years, during which time he instigated a renewed Royal
Navy presence around the globe, secured an expanded shipbuilding
programme and helped broker the AUKUS agreement between the
United Kingdom, Australia and the United States.
Commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1990, he has served in
numerous command and staff appointments, both ashore and afloat,
and in command of UK and international forces. Operational tours
have included the Iran/Iraq Tanker War, security duties in the
Falklands, NATO operations in the Adriatic, countering smuggling
in Hong Kong and the Caribbean, and three tours in Iraq – each in
command.
