A nation strong in values is able to conquer all
As Britain prepares to mark Armed Forces Day on Saturday, Secretary of State for Defence BEN WALLACE salutes all the British heroes who have fought for our freedom in the past and looks ahead to the threats the country and its people face in the future
LAST week I stood beneath the sweltering sun in the village of Pranjani, Serbia, to unveil a memorial to a remarkable Second World War operation.
Seventy-seven years ago, in that very place, our Special Operations Executive – an underground army that worked with resistance forces in Europe – hatched a plan to free more than 100 Allied fighters from under the nose of the Nazis.
Working with villagers they built an airstrip and succeeded in flying them to safety. It was the Balkans equivalent ofthe Great Escape.
As the first UK Defence Secretary to visit Serbia, I found the commemoration particularly poignant. But, as the wreaths were laid, I also began reflecting on how those remote events have resonance today.
As I write, brave British men and women are deterring aggression, fighting terrorism and protecting sea lanes across the world.
Like the SOE, and all those who fought for freedom in the war, they deserve our thanks.
Armed Forces Day will be our opportunity to salute them. But it will also be our chance to refocus minds on future threats.
The dangers are growing. Our adversaries are bypassing our strengths and exploiting our weaknesses.
They are operating below the threshold of conflict. And the use of proxies and proliferation of deadly technologies should worry us all.
In response, we are investing £24billion over the next four years to bring in a raft of capabilities across air, land, sea, space and cyberspace.
But investment on its own is not enough. A new age of competition demands we adapt our thinking. Which brings me back to that historic Serbian mission.those ingenious SOE agents, Churchill’s “secret army”, left us the template for success we’re following today.
First, they showed us the importance of a razor-sharp focus on the threat.
Next they proved that small interventions can make a massive difference. Our newly formed Ranger regiment and Future Commando Force are taking this to heart.
Finally, the SOE were masters of diplomacy – able to unite disparate peoples and keep the flame of resistance alive.
Today you’ll find a re-energised global Britain following in their footsteps and reaching out across the world.
We’re leading in Nato and strengthening bonds with the United States.
We’re using our Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier to open up opportunities. Last week I met my counterparts fromturkey and Italy on its decks to discuss global threats.
We’re also tightening ties with smaller nations. In the past few days I witnessed our forces being put through their paces in Serbia during the Us-led Exercise Platinumwolf, where UK forces made up the largest contingent.
But perhaps there was a deeper secret to the SOE’S success: their passionate commitment to British values. They knew democracy, justice and freedom were more than words on a page. And they understood that standing up for what you believe has the power to motivate acts of courage.
A nation strong in its values and united in its resolve is a force to be reckoned with. It is a message I’ll be reflecting on this coming Armed Forces Day.