UK to partner with ‘freedom-loving’ nations
LONDON: Britain is to strike new security deals with democratic countries to fight the influence of China and Russia, new foreign secretary Liz Truss has said.
The UK will seek alliances with India, Japan and Canada to protect trade, echoing the AUKUS deal Prime Minister Boris Johnson signed with the US and Australia. Ms Truss said Britain would seek alliances with “freedom-loving” democracies to challenge the influence of “malign actors and authoritarian states”.
In her first big interview in the job Ms Truss said: “We want to work with our friends and allies to create more economic agreements and security agreements.
“AUKUS is about protecting trade routes and shipping routes, specifically with Australia, but I want to look at arrangements with India, with
Japan and with Canada to expand that security support in the same types of areas.”
Ms Truss said the best way for democracies to win influence in Asian and African countries would be to provide a rival source of infrastructure and development money to China and Russia.
“We want to build up the freedom-loving, pro-democracy grouping of countries and create more economic pull, so non-aligned countries aren’t pulled into the orbit of authoritarian regimes,” she said. “Instead they are getting the infrastructure support, the trade and development support from pro-freedom, prodemocracy nations.” Ms Truss said security pacts could augment trade deals, pointing to Britain’s request to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.