West needs a new Nato to stop Russia

Britain has learned in the past few days that it must take the Russian threat far more seriously. The idea that we could ever cash in on the post-Cold War dividend by slashing defence spending and lowering our guard has been showed once again to be one of the great delusions of the past 30 years. Russia has been trying to expand its influence into Georgia, Ukraine, Syria, even into the US presidential election.

Now chemical warfare has been practiced on an ex-spy and his daughter in Salisbury, putting other lives at risk, while a Kremlin critic has been found dead in his home, reportedly strangled. Britain has taken a stand by expelling some diplomats: Russia’s tit-for-tat closure of the British consulate in St Petersburg and the British Council cultural organisation go beyond the UK’s actions.

A long-term response is needed in the form of alliances that stand up for the West’s interests. We need either an expanded Nato or, better still, a new organisation altogether; one that recognises the contours of the global ideological conflict. Our common-interest with other democratic capitalist countries extends well beyond Europe and the North Atlantic, beyond even the conflict with Moscow. We should be closely partnered with South Korea and Japan, which have to deal with a nuclear North Korea; and with Taiwan, which is still fending off the communist mainland. We should also be working more enthusiastically with Israel, that outpost of stable democracy in the Middle East. It’s odd that we remain in a Nato alliance with Turkey, which has become an authoritarian regime on the model of Russia.

Throughout this crisis, Jeremy Corbyn has been disingenuous and pacifistic. The Left is happy to enjoy the fruits of Western democracy, including the freedom of speech to criticise the very system that keeps them safe. But when national unity is needed, they are divisive and useless.

We haven’t ended war and conflict. Wherever we look, there are growing dangers, including nuclear proliferation, terrorism, bio-chemical threats and cyber-attacks.

It is high time that we make defence of the realm a national priority again.