3rd Apr 2025 06:36
(Alliance News) - David Lammy is set to call on the UK's Nato allies to increase defence spending to make the alliance "stronger, fairer and more lethal".
The Foreign Office said the UK Foreign secretary will tell allies at a meeting of Nato foreign ministers in Brussels on Thursday that boosting defence spending is the collective duty of Nato members to improve safety in the face of long-term and interconnected threats from Russia and its enablers.
It comes after the UK announced 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 – an increase of GBP11.8 billion.
Lammy 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."
The Foreign secretary will also 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 in Ukraine.
US President Donald Trump on Thursday hailed "good co-operation" between Russia and Ukraine as the US mediates ceasefire discussions with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky's officials.
Speaking from the White House as he announced tariffs on US imports of goods from around the world, Trump said: "We're going to get it stopped.
"It's a senseless war that would have never happened if I was president and it shouldn't be allowed to go on."
Last week, the White House said that both Russia and Ukraine had agreed to pause hostilities in the Black Sea after their separate talks designed to secure a ceasefire.
However, strikes in Ukraine have continued. Zelensky said on Wednesday that four people had been killed by a missile strike on Kryvyi Rih.
Lammy will on Thursday urge allies to maximise economic pressure on Putin to force him to the negotiating table.
He will also 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 role in enabling Russia's actions in Ukraine.
By John Besley
Press Association: News
source: PA
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