Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s remarks at the NATO Summit press conference in Washington D.C.
11 July 2024
Good evening thank you for being here, I really appreciate it. This is of course my first week as Prime Minister…
But I’ve come here to Washington, three and half thousand miles from home…
For a very simple reason.
Because every policy we have in pursuit of our missions…
Everything we’re going to do to improve people’s lives…
All that we hold dear…
Depends on our security.
That is our first priority…
It is always our first priority…
I made that crystal clear to the British people in our campaign…
And so I also came to this summit with a clear message.
A message of enduring and unwavering commitment…
To the NATO alliance.
To Ukraine.
To the collective security of our country, our continent, and our allies around the world.
I’m proud to represent a party that was instrumental in creating NATO 75 years ago.
It was Labour Prime Minister, Clement Attlee…
And a Labour Foreign Secretary, Ernie Bevin…
Who fought so hard to make this a reality.
This is our history – and we’re proud of it…
And I am determined to take that pride forward into the future.
So have no doubt – we will match our words with action.
We live in a new and dangerous era…
One defined by volatility and insecurity.
We face the generational threat of Russia…
Aided by the likes of North Korea and Iran.
Conflicts – rage across the Middle East and North Africa.
The challenge of China.
Terrorism.
And international institutions, that should be at the heart of the response…
Are being undermined.
Our collective reaction to this moment, will shape the world for decades to come.
So we must stand up for our interests.
But we must also stand up for our values.
Because it was that insight…
That unity of interests and values…
That guided Attlee and Truman in creating NATO 75 years ago.
We must mobilise what Bevin called…
Our “collective moral and material force.”
Because our values are not a point of weakness, as Putin may think…
They are the source of our strength.
NATO has become the most successful alliance in history…
Precisely because democracy, freedom and the rule of law…
were hardwired into the NATO Charter.
And that is the legacy we inherit today…
An inheritance not just of an institution…
But of a duty and of service.
And it is our duty now…
To take these fundamental principles…
And adapt them to meet the test of our times.
That starts in Ukraine.
Together with our allies today…
We have reaffirmed our unshakeable support…
For Ukraine’s ultimate victory.
Our determination – to deliver justice for the awful crimes that Russia has committed.
You will have all seen the scenes this week in Kyiv…
Russia using some of the deadliest weapons in its arsenal…
On innocent children.
Striking a hospital.
When I went to Kyiv, I saw for myself the devastation and inhumanity of Russian aggression.
I went to Bucha, just outside Kyiv and spoke to some of the people there
who described to me and pointed to me on the road
Where they had picked up the bodies of their friends
their family members
who had been killed, many of them handcuffed
And had to transport them to find graves for them
It’s In shopping trollies, they told me, that is the only way they could move those bodies
And that had a profound effect on me as they dug those graves – mass graves – of people who had been shot and left on their own.
The alternative to Ukraine’s victory is unthinkable.
Not only an afront to our values…
A green light to aggressors everywhere.
And the fate of Ukraine is a cause that unites Britain.
And that is why we will deliver…
£3 billion worth of support to Ukraine each year… for as long as it takes.
We will speed up our delivery of military aid.
And together with our NATO allies…
We have pledged €40 billion of support to Ukraine every year…
We’ve established a new body to coordinate that support…
Agreed to ramp up industrial production…
And confirmed Ukraine’s irreversible path to full NATO membership.
As I told President Zelensky today…
NATO will be stronger with Ukraine as a member.
And because of the generational threat from Russia, that demands a generational response…
So we will increase NATO’s focus on future threats around the world…
With Britain playing its full role.
We will continue to put our armed forces at NATO’s disposal…
Maintain our presence in Estonia and Poland…
Lead the land arm of the Allied Response Force this year…
And maintain and modernise our nuclear deterrent.
Today, this alliance is stronger than ever.
23 members are now spending 2% of their GDP on defence.
But in light of the grave threats to our security, we must go further.
So we will conduct a Strategic Defence Review…
To strengthen our armed forces…
And protect our national security.
And we will set out a clear path to spending 2.5% of our GDP on defence.
And I say with candour to all our allies…
We must understand that this is now essential.
This is a defensive alliance.
We do not seek conflict.
But we know that the best way to avoid it is to prepare for it…
And to lead.
Britain belongs on the world stage…
So I am determined…
To reset our relationship with Europe…
Return to leadership on climate change…
And engage more deeply with the global south.
Because whether the challenges we face are military…
Or global challenges like climate change, cyber and energy security…
We will meet them head on.
Stand – shoulder-to-shoulder with our friends and allies.
Because history shows – we are stronger when we do.
This morning I laid a wreath…
At the Tomb of the Unknown Solider at Arlington Cemetery.
It was an incredibly moving moment, just being there, seeing the very, very many graves
And that wreath laying
To honour the sacrifice made by so many Americans…
Side by side with British troops…
In defence of our freedom.
It is a reminder of our unbreakable bond with the United States.
A bond which I reaffirmed here with President Biden.
And a reminder…
That we must honour the service and sacrifice of our veterans…
With the decisions that we take today.
So we meet this moment with a new resolve…
Determined to renew Britain’s place on the world stage…
Proud of what we have to offer…
Confident, not just in the value of our strength…
But in the strength of our values.
Britain was at the heart of creating NATO 75 years ago.
And our commitment remains unshakeable…
The foundation of our security and prosperity for many years to come.
Thank you.