National and Economic Security Policy in a Geopolitical Age: the UK’s approach

Thank you very much indeed, Samira, who can follow that extraordinary exchange we had just had between Eric Schmidt and General Sir Patrick Sanders. What an education that was in itself and what a delight it is to listen to and speak to you on this fascinating topic.

I am responsible in the British government for the diplomatic interface with the technology of the kind we are talking about, it could be defence and security, or it could be other kinds and I will touch upon them a little bit later in my talk. Ladies and gentlemen, as you have heard and know this is not a world or a time for a grand strategy. We face a strained international order, characterised by state competition and mounting security threats as well as the kinds of non-state actors we have seen in recent years. As societies and economies have become more complex and more interconnected, new vulnerabilities have emerged and been exploited and they in turn damage the integrity of the open economic system which has underpinned our prosperity since the 1990s. We should think not in terms of two geographies, Europe and the Far East but also a third in the Middle East and that it going to impose new stresses and strains on that system.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has brought that reality into the sharpest relief as we have just been hearing. This weaponisation of connectivity – whether grain or gas – has driven soaring global energy prices and plunged millions of the world’s most vulnerable into hunger and famine. Many miles from the theatre of war potentially into hunger and famine . As Eric said this is the first broadband war, this is not just in technologies but in mind-set and leadership. Technology has been central to the response. But this comes in both directions, but the unity and resolve in Great Britain and United States, European Allies and others in responding to such an act of aggression has been very striking. We have imposed major macro-economic cost on President Putin, frustrated his war machine and strengthened Ukrainian leverage and power. And we know it caught Russia off-guard: our sanctions have already seen Russia facing its first external debt default potentially for a century. Above all, it demonstrated that the ‘political west’ has the economic weight to defend global stability and promote the values we cherish – openness, sovereignty and freedom.

Now this systematic competition that we have described is intensifying, and is growing in complexity. The geopolitical order is being superseded or placed within a wider new global order of opinion and connectivity and narrative. Our mission on economic security is clear and crystallising – at home and with partners, and I propose to touch on three aspects of that mission.

The first is learning from our Russia/Ukraine experience in order to do more to resist aggression and coercion. That means for us focusing on deepening co-operation with G7 allies to build a new economic security mechanism; what the Prime Minster has called an ‘Economic NATO’ that will improve our collective ability to assess, deter, and respond to threats from aggressive powers, including economic coercion. In the simplest terms if the economy of one partner is being targeted by an aggressive regime we should be prepared and we will be prepared through this new mechanism to support them.
Having such defensive economic measures alongside traditional measures of resistance in a state of readiness builds credible asymmetric deterrence to aggression including threats of military force. It underscores our commitment to a world in which respect for international rules and sovereignty is the bedrock of good relations, good business and healthy society.

Secondly, we must build our own resilience to shocks – this has been a big theme of the last 24 hours – whether they are organic or come from outside. The most urgent part of this task is to build redundancies and to end our dependence on authoritarian states who would weaponise our very openness and integration and connectivity to hurt us. We have shown unprecedented resolve in this respect – divesting away from Russian energy supply is a signal of upmost importance in showing our willingness to bear short term economic costs in defending a sovereign free state from unprovoked aggression.

We are also getting ahead in other possible areas of strategic dependence. Whether it is vital new technologies or the critical minerals that will power those technologies and support then. We are working to strengthen trusted supply chains that can be relied on whatever the geopolitical weather. Supply chains that can operate on a cost basis that allows them to be effective, wide spread and support our wider aims. That will mean helping allies pursue and consolidate strategic advantage – a practice of “friend shoring” across key sectors. And as we think to our friends, there is no closer or more trusted bond than that between our two countries the United Kingdom and United States of America. It is often said that democracies are slower to respond to threats but more resilient over time. We must change that, we must be quicker to respond and more resilient. We must be highly rapid in our response in a highly changing environment as Eric Schmit has pointed out.

Finally, we must learn in this new world to “play offence” even better than we are at the moment. That means not to abandon but to practice and exemplify the values we are defending. That is to promote the liberal international trading order, whose transformative benefits we have seen for many decades across the world. And to be a dynamic, reliable and a trustworthy partner. This applies to the terms of trade. We are at a globally high standard. The free trade agreements we are developing are of the highest quality when it comes to transparency and trust. And our new independent trade policy allows us to do more for emerging economies including through the Developing Countries Trading Scheme – a scheme that will offer 65 developing countries greater opportunities from exporting to the UK.

It also means extending our collective economic offer to the world – in the sectors that matter most to them, and without the strings of coercion we have seen our adversaries use. At the highest level, the G7 Partnership for Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) is an important leap forward. PGII will mobilise $600bn of reliable finance for infrastructure investment in low and middle-income countries over the next five years. What it shows is that combating future adversaries is not just liberties as a value itself but it is something we must turn our strength to and our capacity to innovate in support for the global good – in a whole range of sectors from vaccines to the next generation of energy production and many others. And these are sectors I will be focusing my team on within government in the coming months.

Ladies and gentlemen, the war of the future is the war of hearts and minds as well as weapons. If it was ever thus, it is more so now than it ever before. But we need to build and maintain that trust. And we will. Thank you very much indeed.

Brydie Hurrell from outside Melbourne and other family members attended the service for for RAF pilot Flight Sergeant (Flt Sgt) William Robert Stephen Hurrell, at Jonkerbos War Cemetery on Thursday 29 September. Also there were representatives of the RAF, the British Embassy in the Netherlands, and dignitaries from the municipality of Lochem. Members of the RAF’s Queen’s Colour Squadron (QCS) bore his coffin.

The ceremony was led by Rev. (Squadron Leader) Josephine Critchley, Chaplain at RAF Honington, and organised by the MOD’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC), also known as the ‘MOD War Detectives’.

The remains of Flt Sgt Hurrell were discovered in 2019 after an excavation of an aircraft by the Joint Aircraft Recovery Team of the Netherlands MoD on farmland near the village of Eefde in the municipality of Lochem, as part of the Netherlands WWII National Aircraft Recovery Program, of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Working alongside the Recovery and Identification Unit of the Royal Netherlands Army and The RAF Air Historical Branch, JCCC reviewed documents confirming the plane recovered was from a Typhoon MN582 of No. 175 Squadron RAF which crashed on 26 September 1944. Flt Sgt Hurrell was flying in a formation of six aircraft on an armed reconnaissance north of Arnhem when they were attacked by up to 60 enemy ME109’s.

Tracey Bowers, JCCC said:

It has been an absolute privilege to arrange this ceremony for Flt Sgt William Hurrell and I am grateful for the help given by the community of Lochem. I am honoured to stand alongside his military and blood family to pay him this final tribute.

William Robert Stephen Hurrell was born on 1 May 1923 in London to Sydney and Daisy Hurrell. His enlistment service records from March 1941 state his religious denomination as “C of E” and show he lived in the East Ham area of London. Prior to his RAF career he was an apprentice fitter and turner. After joining the RAF, he served in India and America before receiving his pilot’s wings in 1942. He was promoted to Flt Sgt a year later.

Brydie, Flt Sgt Hurrell’s great niece, said it was important she travelled to the Netherlands:

We grew up knowing that Bill was shot down at the end of the war and that his parents had never found him. We knew he was in the Netherlands – we just weren’t sure where exactly. When we heard about the salvage project we were over the moon. Representing the rest of my family back home means a lot. Bill’s parents and his brother, my grandfather, died never knowing where he was , but we know have closure for them and for ourselves.

The ceremony included poems and readings by serving RAF personnel, family, and dignitaries from Lochem; a town instrumental in the recovery of Flt Sgt Hurrell’s remains.

Rev.Critchley, said:

As we have committed Bill’s body to the ground, we go from here knowing that his selfless actions ensured the security of so many; as he laid down his life, we are assured that he rests in God’s loving presence and is at peace.

Director for the Central and Southern European Area at the CWGC, Geert Bekaert, said:

We are privileged to host this ceremony today, dedicated to Flt Sgt Hurrell and the ultimate sacrifice he paid fighting for his country 78 years ago. It is our honour to commemorate him and care for his grave in perpetuity.

Mr Chair, strong, independent media and journalists are part of the bedrock of democratic societies and are essential to hold governments to account. We support the vital work of ODIHR and the Representative on Freedom of the Media as an early warning mechanism when fundamental freedoms are challenged.

In times of war, the media’s role in providing timely and accurate information is even more important. As Ukraine liberates more territory, journalists expose the atrocities caused by Russia’s military aggression.

We are appalled by the findings of the Moscow Mechanism reports on Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Journalists have been subjected to unlawful detentions, abductions, enforced disappearances and torture. At least 15 killed so far; with reports that hundreds more have been shelled, shot, or detained. In the parts of Ukraine temporarily controlled by Russia, the information space has been severely restricted. We share the condemnation by the UN and other international organisations of the cyber-attacks on Ukraine’s media and internet infrastructure.

The Moscow Mechanism report on Russia’s internal repression exposes a systemic and repressive war against the freedom of the Russian people. Propaganda, repressive legislation, and violence have created a climate of fear and intimidation. From 1992-2021 reportedly at least 58 journalists were killed in Russia for their work.

Since February, legislation has suppressed freedom to express dissent and criminalised the “discrediting” of Russia’s Armed Forces. How is this legislation and practice compatible with the human dimension obligations that Russia freely signed up to as an OSCE founding member? And, what message does this send? Be quiet or be persecuted.

As we have seen, most independent journalists and media outlets have left Russia or closed. The Russian government is isolating the Russian people from credible information, from the world outside of Russia’s borders. Those reporting accurately on Ukraine, face jail, including dual British-Russian national Vladimir Kara-Murza. As the Moscow Mechanism report clearly says, “this is military censorship”. We remind the Russian Government of the Milan Decision on Safety of Journalists in 2018, and urge them to comply with the 1991 Moscow Declaration which stressed the importance of protecting vulnerable groups in armed conflict, including journalists.

And we call for accountability – for Ukrainians persecuted in occupied territories and for Russians seeking simply to be able to tell the truth.

• The Great Britain & Northern Ireland Campaign (GREAT) is the UK’s flagship international marketing programme.
• GREAT’s ‘Study UK’ campaign is set to generate £407m of investment right across the UK, from international students registered in 2021/22.
• Students from 121 countries around the world have been attracted to UK universities by the campaign; driving impressive growth for local economies.

International students attracted to UK universities by the GREAT ‘Study UK’ campaign and enrolled in 2021/22 will generate £407m for the economy during the course of their degrees.

The campaign, delivered in partnership with the British Council, uses a combination of marketing channels and scholarship opportunities to promote the quality and opportunities of UK higher education to students worldwide; highlighting reasons why the UK is a first-choice study destination.

Across the four nations, the estimated economic benefit of international students attracted to the UK by the GREAT campaign is:

• England £339.1m
• Scotland £44.4m
• Wales £18.4m
• Northern Ireland £5.1m

The campaign supports the government’s levelling up ambition, with many parts of the UK benefiting economically and culturally from international students.

Projected economic benefit across cities in the UK include:

• Greater Manchester £13.3m
• Liverpool £4.7m
• Newcastle £6.0 m
• Leeds £7.7m
• Sheffield £7.1m
• Birmingham £11.6m
• Bristol £4.0m
• Edinburgh £8.5m
• Glasgow £9.1m
• Cardiff £5.0m
• Belfast £1.6m

The success of the GREAT ‘Study UK’ campaign is well evidenced, for example Teesside University experienced a 40% increase on 2020/21 international student enrolments from markets where GREAT scholarships were offered.

Cabinet Office Minister Jake Berry said:

“The GREAT ‘Study UK’ campaign attracts and supports international students to study in the UK. International students drive growth in local economies across the country, they also enrich the university experience, bringing greater diversity and an international viewpoint for all students.”

Higher education is a significant export for the UK. The 2018/2019 cohort of international students generated £28.8 billion for the UK economy according to a report by the Higher Education Policy Institute .

Maddalaine Ansell, Director Education, British Council said:

“International students not only make our universities vibrant and cosmopolitan but also, through getting to know and understand us, can become life long ambassadors for not only UK Education but our values and way of life.

“Many international graduates go on to play important roles in the political, economic, scientific and cultural life of their own countries and their knowledge of, and affection for, the UK means we have friends in many places.”

Minister for Skills Andrea Jenkyns said:

“Attracting the brightest students from around the world is good for our universities and delivers growth at home, as well as supporting the creation of more places for UK students.

“We’ve already smashed the target set in our International Education Strategy to attract 600,000 international students per year to study here – hitting it for the first time almost ten years early – and we are now focusing on bringing in £35bn from our education exports by 2030.”

Doug W Pearce, International Recruitment, University of Leeds

“The wider UK HE sector sees great value in the British Council’s efforts including the GREAT campaign to continue to build a strong brand profile of the UK as one of the top study destinations worldwide.”

Shonagh Maak, International Recruitment Manager, University of Glasgow

“Our international students enhance the learning environment of our campus, contribute to research output and add immense value to the cultural vibrancy of our campus and the wider community in Glasgow.”

ENDS

Notes for Editors

About the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland campaign

• The GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland campaign (GREAT) is the government’s flagship international communications programme. The objective is to drive economic growth across the entire nation by encouraging an international audience to visit, study, trade, invest, live and work in the UK.
• Established in 2011, GREAT promotes the best of the UK and has been used in 149 countries worldwide, and by 22 government departments and ALBs, providing HMG’s international network with a high-quality, impactful and consistent communications brand.

GREAT Study UK

• The Study UK campaign was first launched in 2016, when the British Council and GREAT introduced a new overarching campaign to unify and focus the UK’s international marketing efforts.
• Study UK has generated a total of £407 million return on investment (ROI) for the UK from international student enrolments in the academic year 2021/22.
  • This represents 1.14% of the total net impact generated from international enrolments in this period, and is equivalent to a total of 4,316 individual enrolments as a result of Study UK.
  • Approximately £1,190 of each international student’s spend in the UK can be attributed to Study UK.
• The methodology combines published data with self-reported data from an annual survey. Published data allows us to produce:
  • An estimate for the number of new international students enrolled at UK HEIs in 2021/22
  • The average net economic impact for each of these students over the duration of their studies The annual survey of newly enrolled international students studying with UK HEIs generates data from which we derive:
  • The number of new international students whose decision to study in the UK was influenced to any degree by Study UK
  • The average extent to which students’ ultimate decisions were influenced by Study UK, in the context of other sources used. The calculation assumes that self-reported estimates of the overall influence of Study UK in their decision are over-estimated by students and adjusts for that.
• It also makes a number of adjustments based on the context of students’ decision making journeys, namely:
  • when students first encountered Study UK in their decision-making journey (the earlier a student encounters it, the more effect it can have),
  • the number of information sources used and the relative influence of each,
  • the extent to which Study UK delivered information and reassurance on the factors of greatest importance in students’ decisions of where to study.

Quotes

Hathaichanok, Thailand, master’s in Real Estate, Nottingham Trent University

“I chose to study in the UK because it’s so international. It is home to many global, top-ranking universities and a dynamic job market.”

Prof Judith Lamie, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Swansea University

“We are a deeply proud Welsh University with staff, students, partnerships, and research links that stretch across the globe. By taking our passion for Swansea to the world, we also bring the world to Swansea, fostering a diverse and vibrant community for students and staff alike.”

Maya, USA, master’s in International Relations, Swansea University.

“There’s something special about Wales. There’s a culture of openness and welcome here that I had never experienced before. There’s this term in Welsh, ‘cwtch’, which is often painted on the walls. It doesn’t have a direct translation to English, but people have explained it as a positive, safe feeling and sense of togetherness and community. Since living here, I have really felt it.”

Stella, France, master’s in Music Business Management, University of Westminster

“As someone who wants to go into the music industry, I know that just being in the UK offers many opportunities. There are so many more music labels, music publishing companies and music management companies in the UK than anywhere else. Without doing my master’s and having the exposure I’ve had to relevant professionals, I would have found it much harder to take my first steps within the industry.”

Chrislyn, Malaysia, master’s in Intellectual Property and the Digital Economy, University of Glasgow

“The University of Glasgow is home to one of the leading research centres for intellectual property matters in the EU – the UK Copyright and Creative Economy Centre (CREATe). It is one of the best universities to study my specialism in intellectual property and the digital economy. I knew that if I was to pursue a postgraduate degree, I wanted to do it somewhere at the top of its game. ”

Hannah, USA, master’s in Transitional Justice and Human Rights Law, Ulster University.

“I decided to come and study in Northern Ireland because of the historical and political context. Living and studying here has already given me so much perspective into how to shape-shift old versions of peace processes into new cultural contexts. I received a John J Sweeney Scholarship to study in Northern Ireland and haven’t looked back.”