Europe must be ready to fight against Russia as Putin continues his bombardment in Ukraine, Sir Keir Starmer told the Munich Security Conference.
The Prime Minister said: ‘Now we feel the solidity of peace, the very ground that we stand on softening under our feet.
‘It’s the job of leaders to be ahead of these seismic shapes, yet that is against the grain of history.’
He said leaders must not dither as ‘Russia has proved its appetite for aggression’.
He continued that after a peace deal for Ukraine, ‘Russia’s rearmament would only accelerate’ and ‘we must answer this threat in full’.
‘To break the convention of a thousand speeches, we are not at a crossroads.
Keir Starmer has committed to sending the HMS Prince of Wales to the Arctic (Picture: UK MOD Crown copyright)
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaking during the Munich Security Conference (Picture: Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire)
‘The road ahead is straight and it is clear. We must build our hard power, because that is the currency of the age.
‘We must be able to deter aggression, and, yes, if necessary, we must be ready to fight.’
It will be led by the HMS Prince of Wales, ‘operating alongside the US, Canada and other NATO allies’.
He said: ‘It is a powerful show of our commitment to Euro-Atlantic security,” he adds.
‘That is also why we’re enhancing our nuclear cooperation with France. For decades, the United Kingdom has been the only nuclear power in Europe to commit its deterrent to protect all NATO members.’
