Prime Minister Boris Johnson's 'Global Britain' strategy

Amidst the “chaos”

Despite the Covid-19 crisis severely impacting the economy, the British government has announced it will allocate an additional £24.1 billion to the military over the next four years, significantly higher than the previously committed £16.5 billion. With this decision,UK defense budgetIn the coming years, defense spending will account for 2.2% of GDP, higher than the 2% that the US requires NATO member states to achieve. The UK will also have the largest defense budget in Europe and the second largest in the NATO military alliance, after the US. So what prompted the UK to make such a bold decision in the defense sector at a time when most other countries are focusing on economic recovery or public health investment?

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson stands outside 10 Downing Street, London, on October 23, 2020. Photo: USNI

First of all, according to the explanation ofPrime Minister JohnsonThe world is in its most dangerous situation since the end of the Cold War. “Everything in Britain, from jobs and businesses to eating and shopping, depends on the smallest security measures,” Johnson emphasized. This seems like a reasonable explanation, given that Britain is now outside the EU. It is time for the country to pursue its own security policies.

Secondly, internal political challenges may also be part of the calculations of the 10 Downing Street boss. While facing criticism over his handling of the Covid-19 crisis, Johnson wants to maintain support in the northern counties of England, which he won from the Labour Party, and also to maintain as much support as possible from trade unions north of the Scottish border. Strengthening military defenses is seen as pleasing members of Johnson's Conservative party, and also a great way to demonstrate where his priorities lie.

Thirdly, beyond its significant defense implications, Boris Johnson hopes that the budget increase, which prioritizes the construction of 12 new warships, will act as a catalyst for uniting the UK's territories by reviving the shipbuilding industry, which once played a vital role in the economic life of Scotland and Wales. The decision is also seen as a way to appease the anger of many Scottish politicians and citizens following Johnson's earlier statement that the gradual transfer of power to Scotland was a "disaster."

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson meets with soldiers in a tent on the Salisbury Plains training ground in September 2019, in Salisbury, England. Photo: Getty

Present,a wave of demands for independence from the United KingdomOpinion in Scotland is rising again following the 2016 Brexit and Boris Johnson's government's poor handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. The ruling Scottish National Party has been actively campaigning and pressuring the UK government to allow a second independence referendum.

Fourth, Johnson also needs to build a relationship with the next US president. Immediately after US media announced Joe Biden as the next US president, the British Prime Minister sent congratulations and pledged that "the United Kingdom will continue to be a valuable military ally of the United States." If Joe Biden takes office in January, Britain will demonstrate to the American leader that it is a reliable and well-equipped military partner. In its new budget plan, Britain also allocates funds for joint US-UK research efforts, known as "next generation," focusing on projects such as hypersonic missiles and directed energy weapons.

A new global role

The UK government's primary objective in proposing a defense budget increase is to seek a new global role in the wake of Britain's departure from the EU. For decades, Britain and France were key battlefield allies of the US in Iraq and Afghanistan. But the 2016 referendum on leaving the EU has cast uncertainty over London's global role. This coincides with the rise of China and the Trump administration's growing doubts about the value of relationships with traditional allies.

The British aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in Chesapeake Bay, outside Annapolis. Photo: USNI

Clearly, the increase in defense spending helps Britain maintain its position as a middle-tier military power alongside countries like France, Germany, and Japan, but still lags behind the US and China. Britain is expected to focus spending on leading-edge technology areas, including cyber and space capabilities, while addressing weaknesses in defensive weapons. Johnson will also announce a new agency dedicated to artificial intelligence (AI), establish a National Cyber ​​Security Force, and a space command with the capability to launch its first rocket by 2022. Meanwhile, nearly £6 billion will be invested in military research and development, including upgrading airborne weapons systems.

However, the focus of the UK's latest defense budget increase will be on massive investments in the Navy. Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared that Britain will restore its status as a leading power.Europe's most powerful navy.Through a plan to build 12 new destroyers, and simultaneously develop a new generation of warships, regional observers are calling this "an early Christmas gift from the Royal Navy."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Johnson also confirmed plans to deploy the HMS Queen Elizabeth carrier strike group to the Indian Ocean and East Asia next year, as part of its first long-range deployment. London's strategic intentions for the Indo-Pacific region will become clearer when the UK government publishes its Comprehensive Review of Foreign, Defence and Security Policy early next year.

A CH-47 helicopter carrying senior British officers arrives at the Ministry of Defence training area in Salisbury on October 14, 2020. Photo: CNN

However, based on available information, observers speculate that Britain will deploy an aircraft carrier through the Indo-Pacific region once a year, or more realistically, once every two years. It is also possible that a British destroyer could be deployed to Asia on a longer-term basis. This model has already been used by the British Navy in Bahrain, in the Middle East, where HMS Montrose was based for a period of three years.

All of this is aimed at ensuring that post-Brexit Britain will play a key role on the global geopolitical stage. Prime Minister Johnson wants to turn the slogan "Global Britain" into reality, starting with strengthening defense capabilities and ensuring London's security presence in strategic regions of the world.