Latest news with #BritishDefence
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Ukraine will lose. Britain must now prepare for Russia's next onslaught
It is time to put outrage, passion and wishful thinking aside and face facts: in what may well go down in history as the West's gravest foreign policy failing of the 21st century, Ukraine has lost the war against Russia. The conflict is likely to come to an end sooner rather than later – and on terms that favour Putin. Britain must accept that the Ukraine war is all but over – and prepare for an even bigger brewing conflict. Tomorrow's Alaska talks between Trump and Putin have scandalised European opinion. British defence sources have vented to me their disgust at the free world's leader sitting down with the most ruthless authoritarian ruler alive to carve chunks out of a country that has fought heroically for the liberal, democratic principles upon which America was founded – principles that are fading from a US foreign policy that is increasingly transactional. That Trump hopes to seal the deal by granting Putin access to Ukrainian rare minerals has added a neocolonial whiff to the stench of betrayal. Europe's righteous indignation is tinged with hypocrisy. Ukraine has been burned not only by Trump's unsparing America First policy, but by Europe's disastrous refusal to invest in its own defence. An end to the war is imminent – and it will plunge Europe into its most perilous moment since 1939. The geopolitical dynamics that have enabled Ukraine to hold the line against Russia have shifted. The Biden administration was content to keep the war in permanent stalemate. The hope was that the West could sap Russia's power over time, while minimising the risk of a nuclear confrontation. But the Trump administration, far from wanting to slowly destroy Russia, seeks to nurture Moscow as an ally, as it scrambles to contain the biggest threat to US supremacy – a rising China. As Moscow becomes ever more reliant on Beijing's oil purchases and investment, Washington fears that a cash-strapped and isolated Russia risks becoming a satellite state of China. There is now a strategic logic for both Kyiv and Moscow to end the war. With the West unwilling to decisively ramp up support, Ukraine knows that the longer the war continues, the more calamitous it will be for Ukraine economically, demographically and – in a country with shallow democratic roots – also politically. Washington's leading Russia experts such as Thomas Graham, a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, believe that Russia is on the cusp of a bankable win: 'If the Kremlin were to reach a negotiated solution right now, they would get most of what they want. Ukraine is not going to join Nato. The Russians aren't going to be pushed out of the territory that they occupy in Ukraine. The issue of discrimination against Russian speakers ought to be resolved because most of those Russian speakers live in territory occupied by Russia at this point.' Trump allies are quietly confident that Putin has come to realise that his more grandiose ambitions risk backfiring: the longer a war intended to protect Russian greatness drags on, the more the country risks slipping down the great power rankings. Trump will get his deal, even if the Alaska talks come to naught. Instead of denouncing Trump, Britain should put all its energy into getting ready for a new high-stakes epoch. Even Trump allies voiced to me their fear that the President could draw up a slapdash agreement that rips huge chunks out of Ukraine – and strongarm Europe into agreeing by threatening to block the Continent from using US-obtained weapons and technology in Ukraine. Putin will be emboldened by the deal that is inevitably coming. He will focus on replenishing his army and mulling over other expansionist plans against Moldova and Georgia. It is not unthinkable that a full-scale Europe-wide conflict could break out within the coming decade. The best way to prevent such a scenario is to build up Europe's military power to a degree that deters Putin, particularly in light of America's effective withdrawal from the region. Britain in particular needs to get its finger out. In its determination that we should remain a great military power, the political class dodges the question of which lethal capabilities to focus on. The UK needs to decide whether it can best serve Europe by building up its land army or playing to its naval and air-based strengths. Some in defence circles want us to focus on defending the Arctic North, where Russia's shadow fleet threatens critical infrastructure like undersea cables, and wargaming how the RAF could lend cover to expanded German and Polish land powers in the event of a world war. A decision must be made either way – and it must be made soon. Britain must also prepare for a new era of hybrid warfare. According to Russia expert Mark Galeotti, Moscow is moving away from big ticket cyber attacks towards sabotaging crumbling services in a way that contributes to our sense that 'everything is broken'. As a result of what Galeotti has dubbed this the 'weaponisation of inconvenience', the result might be that we find streaming a film at night impossible, or that we cannot book a train ticket because the online platform is down. Galeotti tells me: 'The essence of the Russian approach to warfare is to try and paralyse us, to get us so disillusioned with our system that we are so busy thinking that nothing works and questioning the fundamentals, that we are unable to muster any kind of organised obstacles to Russian activity.' Britain is dangerously ill equipped for dealing with this unfamiliar, powerful new kind of conflict. Russia will take particular pleasure in targeting us. The Kremlin harbours a surreal enmity towards Britain; earnest Anglophilia bleeds into unhinged Anglophobia. Russian elites tend to view Britain as a nation of high intellects, regarding UK education as the absolute pinnacle and even romantically reckoning that British police stations are staffed by Sherlock Holmes geniuses. By the same logic, the Kremlin tends to see the British as the most brilliantly sneaky of Western antagonists. The Kremlin is convinced that Britain gave America the idea of spurring Ukraine's Orange Revolution – and is preparing to mete revenge. As a new dark age descends on Europe, there is little time for reproach and regret. Our world is becoming more dangerous; we need to be ready.
BBC News
15-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Secret Afghan relocation scheme set up after major data breach
The UK government set up a secret Afghan relocation scheme after the personal data of thousands of people was inadvertently leaked, it can be revealed.A dataset containing the details of nearly 19,000 people who applied to move to the UK following the Taliban takeover of the country was released in error by a British defence official in February Ministry of Defence (MoD) learned of the breach in August 2023 when some details were anonymously posted on existence of the confidential Afghan Response Route, which was established in April 2024, was kept confidential by an injunction but can now be reported following a High Court ruling on Tuesday. This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on X to get the latest alerts.
Reuters
25-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
UK's Babcock upgrades medium term forecast as defence needs rise
LONDON, June 25 (Reuters) - British defence engineering company Babcock (BAB.L), opens new tab forecast mid-single digit revenue growth in the medium term, upgrading guidance at a time when the UK is increasing spending on defence and energy security due to geopolitical instability.
The Guardian
20-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Keir Starmer says ‘hat-trick of deals' shows Britain is back on world stage
Keir Starmer has heralded a 'hat-trick of deals' with India, the US and the EU, telling MPs they will protect thousands of jobs and save businesses hundreds of millions of pounds. Addressing the Commons for the first time since announcing the UK-EU deal on Monday, the prime minister said the three agreements showed Britain had regained its diplomatic clout. Starmer said: 'These deals release us from the tired arguments of the past and as an independent sovereign nation, allow us to seize the opportunities of the future. A clear message sent across the globe that Britain is back on the world stage.' He added: 'These deals represent a signal that we're back on the world stage, a global champion of free trade, playing an historic role on European security and above all, making deals that put money in the pockets of working people.' The prime minister was speaking a day after signing a new deal with the EU, under which the two sides agreed to lower trade barriers for agricultural and food goods, in return for longer fishing quotas for European ships in British seas. The deal will also pave the way for British defence companies to bid for money from the €150bn defence fund and should eventually allow UK travellers to use e-gates at European airports. Starmer said the deal would give British companies an 'unprecedented level of access to the EU market', a day after he acknowledged for the first time the damage Brexit has done to trade. The Conservatives have criticised the deal for conceding too much to the French in particular on fishing rights, with Kemi Badenoch promising to hold another renegotiation should she enter Downing Street. The Tory leader said on Tuesday: 'This deal has already unraveled. The damage is becoming clear. The political consequences will be heated, and here he is, trumpeting his success.' British officials admit they had to concede more to their European counterparts than hoped for on fishing, accepting a 12-year quota agreement rather than the four-year one they insisted was their maximum. Starmer said, however, the deal would be good for British fishers. '[It] reopens the EU market for shellfish and makes it much easier to sell British fish into our largest trading partner,' he told MPs on Tuesday. 'That's hugely significant, because 72% of British fish is traded into EU markets.' Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion The prime minister promised annual EU summits to build on the deal signed this week. However, he resisted pressure from the Liberal Democrats to re-enter some form of customs union, arguing that doing so would be incompatible with the separate agreements struck with India and the US. 'We've just struck a deal with India; we've just struck a deal with the US. If we now undo that good work, we undo all the benefits of those two deals,' he said. 'We had our red lines and we've kept to those red lines.'
