UK Prime Minister: "Europe Must Bear Primary Responsibility for Its Own Defense"

Signaling Willingness for Nuclear Cooperation with EU Countries

On February 14 (local time), UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the United States an “indispensable ally” of Europe, while urging Europe to take greater responsibility for the defense of the continent in line with changes in the U.S. National Security Strategy.

Starmer Keir, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, is speaking at the UN General Assembly held at the UN Headquarters in New York, United States, on the 26th (local time). Reuters/Yonhap

The Guardian, a British daily, reported that at the Munich Security Conference in Germany that day, Prime Minister Starmer said that the United States has made an unparalleled contribution to the security of the European continent, but that it is now “acknowledging that the situation is changing.”

Prime Minister Starmer argued, “Europe must bear the primary responsibility for its own defense, and this is the new norm,” adding that “it is pointless to pretend that we can simply replace all of America’s capabilities, but we must focus on reducing our dependence.”

He went on to say, “We must deliver the investments that will shift us from overdependence to interdependence,” and urged Europe to “develop a vision for European security and greater European autonomy that responds to calls for burden-sharing, without presaging a U.S. withdrawal.”

In terms of European autonomy, he also indicated that the major countries on the European mainland could cooperate on nuclear deterrence.

He said, “For decades, the United Kingdom has deployed its nuclear deterrent to protect the member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO),” and added, “Any adversary must understand that, in a crisis, it could have to face our combined strength.”

The previous day, French President Emmanuel Macron, whose country is the other nuclear-armed state in Europe, also said, in the context of Europe striving for greater self-reliance, that “we must reshape and reorganize the European security architecture,” and that “with this approach, we must redefine nuclear deterrence.”

President Macron is scheduled to deliver a speech on his country’s nuclear doctrine at the end of this month.

Discussions have also begun between France and Germany on a European nuclear umbrella of their own. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the previous day, “I have started discussions with President Macron on a European nuclear deterrent,” and added that Germany would fulfill its legal obligations in the process.