The purpose of Nato was “to keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down” according to its first Secretary General, Lord Hastings Ismay. At its 75th anniversary summit in Washington, the alliance might say that the task now is to ensure that Ukraine isn’t defeated by Russia in the next few months, and to make the defence of Europe Trump-proof.
Sir Keir Starmer is now a key player in both endeavours. Securing Ukraine and the security of Europe is at the heart of plans for UK defence reform. A defence and security review is due to report next year, but a repair and rescue job is needed well before then — particularly for putting the Army in fighting order.
The plight of Ukraine today is difficult, but not yet dire. Its forces and people are exhausted, and the government is hard put to find new recruits and train new reserves for the front line. Russia is now switching tactics to smash power stations, depriving whole districts of electricity and the means to support water and sewage facilities. Russia’s battlefield losses are colossal — more than half a million have been killed, maimed or captured since February 2022, according Western intelligence.
The Western allies have to redouble efforts to support Ukraine’s air defences protect the cities
The Western allies have to redouble efforts to support Ukraine’s air defences protect the cities, and tackle the threat from Russian aircraft and missiles at source. This comes from glide bombs from aircraft often loitering over Russia itself, mass bombardment by drones and specialised missiles such as the Iskander and hypersonic Kinzhal, which travels at many times the speed of sound. This means striking airfields, missile launchers and ammunition dumps inside Russia — as Sir Keir recognised in allowing Storm Shadow missiles to be targeted at Russian bases.
The immediate lesson from Ukraine for Sir Keir and his fellow pragmatist Mark Rutte, the veteran Dutch statesman and new Nato Secretary General, is the extraordinary ability of Ukrainian forces to improvise and innovate — especially in drone and electronic warfare. They can create new systems and capabilities from damaged weaponry of all kinds in weeks. UK defence is burdened by Whitehall’s complex practices — which cause huge damage in the two key areas of recruiting and equipment procurement.
The Ukrainian spirit of improvisation could be usefully applied to our forces. And it would be a lot cheaper than the Whitehall mandarins think.
