The UK will encourage NATO Allies to step up defence spending to
support Euro-Atlantic security as the Foreign Secretary arrives
in Brussels for the NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting today
(Thursday 3 April).
He will say that making NATO stronger, fairer, and more lethal is
key to protecting the conditions for growth at home.
As the Alliance steps up to face long-term and interconnected
threats from Russia and its enablers , the UK will tell Allies
that it's our collective duty to boost defence spending and deter
our adversaries. Increases in defence spending mean more and
better capabilities, keeping us safe.
While Russia and other actors work to destabilise Euro-Atlantic
societies, the UK is playing its part, with the largest sustained
increase to defence spending since the Cold War, hitting 2.5%
from April 2027 and rising to 3% in the next parliament.
Increasing defence spending by £11.8bn between now and 2027/28
will protect the conditions for growth and security at home,
putting money back into the pockets of hard-working British
people. Between 2023-24 the defence sector supported more than
430,000 jobs across the UK.
In the NATO-Ukraine Council, the Foreign Secretary will discuss
the practical planning undertaken by the UK, France, and other
Allies to prepare and deploy as a Coalition of the Willing in the
event of a peace deal.
While Putin continues to delay and obstruct on a move to a
ceasefire, the UK and Allies have doubled down to support Ukraine
in the face of Russia's barbaric invasion. Ukraine has shown its
strong commitment to peace, yet Russia's on-going bombardment of
Ukrainian cities and infrastructure has not ceased.
The Foreign Secretary will tell Allies that now is the time to
maximise pressure on Putin, through every economic lever
possible, to force him to the negotiating table.
Foreign Secretary said:
Keeping our country safe is the Government's first duty, and NATO
is the cornerstone of our security, both at home and abroad.
That's why we have announced the biggest investment to defence
spending since the Cold War.
Allies must spend more, produce more and deliver more on defence
so NATO can become stronger, fairer and more lethal
- boosting our collective defence ensures that NATO is
ready for the threats and challenges we face.
At the meeting will discuss shared security
threats and challenges with counterparts from NATO, as well as
the EU and NATO's Indo-Pacific partners - Australia, Japan, New
Zealand and South Korea. This includes the challenges China poses
to both Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic security, especially its
enablement of Russia's illegal war.
The NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting follows a week of meetings on
regional security with Allies and partners across Europe.
On Sunday the Foreign Secretary visited STRIKFORNATO, the naval
command centre for the Allied Command Operations outside of
Lisbon, before heading to the Weimar Plus Foreign Ministers
Meeting in Madrid on Monday, where he urged partners to take a
united approach to the global challenges posed by Russia's war
machine. He also visited British and other NATO troops stationed
in Kosovo to maintain stability in the Western Balkans.
On Tuesday, the UK added Russia to the UK's Foreign Influence
Registration Scheme to expose interference attempts on British
soil.
