Prime Minister鈥檚 defence speech in Warsaw: 23 April 2024
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak makes a speech on defence.
My first duty as Prime Minister is the security of the British people.
And fulfilling that profound responsibility is only possible because of you.聽
Just ten days ago, I gave the order for the RAF to join an international effort鈥�
鈥ntercepting a barrage of Iranian missiles headed towards Israel.聽
Those pilots, like you, and like every generation of British service men and women before you鈥�
鈥ere willing to put their own safety over the line鈥�
鈥or the security of others and the defence of our liberties and our values.
From your Regiment鈥檚 service in Iraq and Afghanistan鈥�
鈥o your current role here in Poland, protecting NATO鈥檚 eastern flank鈥�
鈥ou have made those sacrifices in the service of our country.聽
I am truly humbled by your courage and professionalism.
And on behalf of a proud and grateful nation, let me simply say: thank you.
But I haven鈥檛 just brought you together today to express my gratitude.
I want to talk to you about how we equip you to do your duty鈥�
鈥n an increasingly dangerous world.
We have entered a period of history in which competition between countries has sharpened profoundly.
An axis of authoritarian states with different values to ours鈥�
鈥ike Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China鈥�
鈥re increasingly assertive.
The danger they pose is not new.
But what is new is that these countries 鈥� or their proxies鈥�
鈥re causing more instability, more quickly, in more places at once.
And they鈥檙e increasingly acting together鈥�
鈥aking common cause in an attempt to reshape the world order.
Now I know there are some people who will think these are faraway problems.
But they are not.
They pose real risks to the United Kingdom鈥檚 security and prosperity.聽
Russia has already poisoned people on British soil with chemical weapons.
Caused energy bills to soar.
Weaponised migration.
And sent technology to Iran in exchange for weapons, like the Shaheed drones鈥�
鈥hat I saw myself are wreaking such devastation on Ukraine.
Iran themselves have threatened to kill and kidnap people within our borders for exercising their right to free speech.
And used proxies like the Houthis, to attack British ships in the Red Sea鈥�
鈥isrupting supplies of crucial goods to our high streets.聽
North Korea, too, is supplying munitions and artillery to Russia鈥�
鈥nd their hackers have targeted British businesses and the NHS.
And Chinese state-affiliated actors have conducted malicious cyber campaigns鈥�
鈥gainst British MPs.
China itself is engaged in a huge military modernisation programme.
Potential flashpoints in the Indo-Pacific鈥�
鈥ould have an impact on the global economy far larger even than Covid.
And China is increasingly working with others to try and reshape the world鈥�
鈥ncluding their so-called 鈥榰nlimited partnership鈥� with Russia.
So the new assertiveness of these authoritarian states far from our shores must concern us.
Because they are increasingly acting together鈥�
鈥gainst the fundamental values that we all hold dear鈥�
鈥f democracy, freedom, and the rule of law.
Now, we must not overstate the danger.
We鈥檙e not on the brink of war.
And nor do we seek it.
And people should feel reassured鈥�
鈥hat the UK鈥檚 armed forces are some of the most professional鈥�
鈥ell-trained, well-equipped, and battle-ready in the world.
And I鈥檓 incredibly proud of all they鈥檝e achieved.
From patrolling the Arctic Circle as part of the Joint Expeditionary Force鈥�
鈥o the campaign against Daesh in the deserts of Iraq and Syria.
From protecting the freedom of navigation in the Red Sea鈥�
鈥o policing the skies above Eastern Europe.
And just look at the investments we鈥檝e made in the last decade.
拢40 billion in the British Army鈥� 聽
鈥ho proudly provide one of NATO鈥檚 strategic reserves鈥�
鈥ith 16,000 troops deployed to Europe this year.聽
The Royal Air Force, equipped with new Typhoons, Chinooks, F35s鈥�
鈥ith the GCAP programme delivering new fighter jets with Japan and Italy.
The Royal Navy is a carrier navy once again鈥�
鈥ith 22 new ships and submarines on the way鈥�
鈥nd the historic AUKUS partnership building the most advanced nuclear-powered subs the world has ever known.
And we鈥檝e launched a new national endeavour to invigorate and invest more in our nuclear deterrent.聽
And all of this is combined with our outstanding diplomatic network鈥�
鈥evelopment expertise, law enforcement and intelligence agencies鈥�
鈥nd our support for allies 鈥� above all the 拢12bn we鈥檝e provided to Ukraine.聽
So I鈥檓 proud of our record on defence.
And confident in our ability to deter our adversaries.
鈥nd ensure the security of the United Kingdom.聽聽
But in a world that鈥檚 the most dangerous鈥�
鈥t鈥檚 been since the end of the Cold War鈥�
鈥e cannot 鈥� and must not - be complacent.
As Churchill said, in 1934:
鈥淭o urge the preparation of defence is not to assert the imminence of war.
On the contrary, if war were imminent鈥�
鈥reparations for defence would be too late.鈥�
I believe we must do more鈥�
鈥o defend our country, our interests, and our values.
So today, I鈥檓 announcing鈥�
鈥he biggest strengthening of our national defence for a generation.
We will increase defence spending to a new baseline of 2.5% of GDP, by 2030.
That starts today.
And rises steadily in each and every year.
Over the next six years, we鈥檒l invest an additional 拢75bn in our defence.
And it will be fully funded with no increase in borrowing or debt.
So this is not some vague aspiration for the future.聽
We have a clear plan for what we鈥檒l spend, when we鈥檒l spend it, and how we pay for it.
A plan that makes the United Kingdom by far the largest defence power in Europe - and second largest in NATO.
Today is a landmark moment in the defence of the United Kingdom.
This is a generational investment in British security and British prosperity.
It makes us safer at home and stronger abroad.
Now we have three immediate priorities for this new investment.
First, we will put the UK鈥檚 own defence industry on a war footing.
One of the central lessons of the war in Ukraine鈥�
鈥s that we need deeper stockpiles of munitions鈥�
鈥nd for industry to be able to replenish them more quickly.聽
So today, we鈥檙e giving 拢10bn in munitions to give industry long-term funding certainty鈥�
鈥acked by long-term contracts鈥�
鈥o they can produce more, be readier to surge capacity鈥�
鈥nd move to 鈥榓lways on鈥� production, when required.
From surface-to-air-missiles made in Bolton鈥�
鈥o anti-tank weapons in Belfast鈥�
鈥e will replenish our stockpiles鈥�
鈥ll while supporting British jobs right across the Union.
But it鈥檚 not just about investing more 鈥� we must invest better.
For too long, too much of our defence procurement鈥�
鈥as been over-complex, over-budget, and over-time.
So we are making radical reforms to our procurement model鈥�
鈥o make sure this new investment delivers value for money.聽
And to encourage private sector investment into defence production鈥�
鈥 can also announce today that we鈥檙e going to put beyond doubt that defence investment鈥�
鈥oes count towards environmental, social and governance assessments.
There is nothing more ethical than defending our way of life from those who threaten it.聽
Now all of this will put us at the forefront of the global defence industry鈥�
鈥llow us to hugely ramp up defence production鈥�
鈥nd give our armed forces the capability they need to keep us safe.
But as in so many areas of our lives, technology is changing the face of war.
So our second immediate priority is innovation and new technology.
We need to innovate and adapt faster than our adversaries鈥�
鈥n space and cyberspace just as much as land, sea, and air.
Look at Ukraine.
Many aspects of the war would be familiar to a soldier from WWI or II
Yet others would be unimaginably different.聽
Like the fact that cheap, high-tech, autonomous drones could disable large parts of Russia鈥檚 Black Sea fleet.聽
The good news is that innovation is already one of our greatest strengths.
The UK鈥檚 own Dragonfire laser directed energy weapon鈥�
鈥osts only 拢10 a shot鈥�
鈥et is accurate enough to hit a 拢1 coin from a kilometre away.聽聽
And today we鈥檙e going further.
We will increase defence R&D to at minimum to 5% of the defence budget.
Invest far more in autonomous drones.
And we will set up a new Defence Innovation Agency.
So that for the first time, decisions about defence innovation鈥�
鈥ill be brought together in a single, strategic agency鈥�
鈥hat will be freed from red tape 鈥�
鈥nd work with the private sector on emerging new technologies.
Now third, we must support Ukraine for the long term.
Since the Cold War ended, the freedom of our continent has been based on a simple idea:聽
That it is for people to decide the fate of their countries, not foreign armies.
But allow Putin to win in Ukraine鈥�
鈥nd that principle of sovereignty would be undermined.
We would be dragged back to a world鈥�
鈥here brute force, rather than the democratic will of free peoples鈥�
鈥ould shape borders and decide futures.
And Putin will not stop in Ukraine.
Win there, and he 鈥� and indeed others - will be emboldened.聽
He has the desire, if not yet the capacity, to attack other countries in Europe鈥�
鈥otentially including NATO allies, who we would be bound to defend鈥�
鈥ust as they are bound to defend us.
The costs of failing to support Ukraine now will be far greater than the costs of repelling Putin.
Because only if he fails will he and other adversaries be deterred.
That is why the United Kingdom鈥�
鈥hose history of standing up to dictators is so much part of our national consciousness鈥�
鈥as come together with our allies to stand with Ukraine from the very start.
Today we will go further.
We will send Ukraine an additional half a billion pounds , hitting 拢3 billion of support this year.
And we鈥檒l provide them with largest-ever package of UK military equipment.
This will include more than 400 vehicles鈥�
鈥�4 million rounds of ammunition鈥�
鈥�60 boats and offshore raiding craft鈥�
鈥ital air defences鈥�
鈥nd long-range precision-guided Storm Shadow missiles.
And as we make our historic commitment to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP鈥�
鈥e鈥檒l move past this stop-start, piecemeal way of backing Ukraine鈥�
鈥o that alongside our long-term security guarantee鈥�
鈥e are today providing a long-term funding guarantee鈥�
鈥f at least the current level of military support to Ukraine, for every year it is needed.
That is the longest commitment any nation has provided.
And it shows that Ukraine is not alone, and Ukraine will never be alone.聽
A decade ago, as Russian tanks rolled into Crimea鈥�
鈥nd the fight against ISIL raged across the Middle East鈥�
鈥ATO allies came together in Wales, and reached an historic agreement鈥�
鈥o increase their defence budgets to 2% of GDP.
Back then, the UK was one of only 4 countries who did so.
Today, there are 11.
And I believe we will look back on this moment鈥�
鈥s a similar turning point in European security.
Because for all that we welcome the news over the weekend鈥�
鈥hat the US Congress agreed a new package of aid for Ukraine鈥�
鈥upport that will be indispensable on the frontline鈥�
鈥his is not the moment for complacency.
We cannot keep expecting America to pay any price or bear any burden鈥�
鈥f we ourselves are unwilling to make greater sacrifices for our own security.
So I鈥檓 proud that the United Kingdom is increasing our defence spending to 拢87bn a year鈥�
鈥he biggest strengthening of our national defence in a generation鈥�
鈥uaranteeing our position as the second largest defence power in NATO, after the US.
All across Europe鈥�
鈥ountries like Poland, Germany, Norway and the Baltic nations鈥�
鈥re stepping up to take greater responsibility for our own security.
And I鈥檓 confident that whether in months or years鈥�
鈥thers will follow, too.聽
And at this turning point in European security, if 2.5% becomes a new benchmark for all NATO partners to reach鈥�
鈥llied defence spending would increase by over 拢140 billion.
That would provide a level of safety and security for the British people鈥�
鈥nd the peoples of all allied nations鈥�
鈥hat far outstrips anything we could achieve alone.
To conclude, we did not choose this moment. But it falls to us to meet it.
In a world of increasing threats, we must show our enemies that we are resolute and determined.聽
That their attempts to destabilise our world or redraw its borders by force will fail.聽聽
That with our friends and allies, we will be at the forefront of the defence of the free, democratic world.聽
And under my leadership, the United Kingdom will always stand up for our interests鈥�
鈥eter our enemies, and defend our values.