During a session on future defence capability on 26 March, Conservative peer Lord Clarke of Nottingham questioned whether the Government supported the long-held position of French President Emmanuel Macron that Europe’s military arm within NATO must be made stronger and more credible—eventually serving as an equal partner to the United States.
“It will take at least until the 2030s for us to achieve that desirable aim,” Lord Clarke said. He added that the UK was currently “being excluded from the arrangements in Europe for defence procurement” and not fully aligned with European defence strategies.
“No one voted for Brexit because they wanted us to cease to have defence and security alliances with our European neighbours,” he added, calling for “the closest possible integration of our defence policy with that of our European allies.”
Responding for the Government, Labour’s Lord Coaker spoke on the UK’s desire to reset and strengthen its defence and security relationship with the European Union, particularly on industrial cooperation.
“We are looking for greater collaboration and co-operation across Europe with respect to a European defence industrial strategy, and those negotiations continue,” Lord Coaker said.
“In many respects, both at European and bilateral levels, we are seeing increased co-operation, and that is essential for our European security and to demonstrate to the Americans that Europe is taking its responsibilities as seriously as it should.”
Liberal Democrat Baroness Smith of Newnham also raised concerns about the UK’s standing with its transatlantic partner. “The Vice-President and others in the United States do not seem to be taking the UK very seriously at the moment,” she observed, asking what steps were being taken to ensure the UK has sufficient military and security capabilities, regardless of US attitudes.
Lord Coaker responded by underlining the importance of maintaining a strong US-UK defence relationship despite what he called “noise” from political figures in the United States.
“I cannot stress enough how important it is that the US and UK stand together, work together and tackle common challenges together,” he said. “Let the noise from this Chamber be that we see the US-UK relationship as absolutely fundamental, and we will do all that we can to maintain it.”