Analysis New UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss Seeks Alliances with India, Japan & Canada

[Gessler]

‘Freedom’ warrior Liz Truss seeks a world of new allies to take on the baddies​

The new foreign secretary wants to fight ‘malign’ forces with free-trade deals linked to security pacts​

Britain is to strike new security deals with democratic countries to fight the influence of China and Russia, says Liz Truss, the foreign secretary.

The UK will seek alliances with India, Japan and Canada to protect trade routes, echoing the Aukus deal that Boris Johnson agreed with America and Australia. Truss said Britain would seek alliances with “freedom-loving” democracies to challenge the influence of “malign actors and authoritarian states”.

In her first major interview in the job she 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.”

Truss, a former trade secretary, said the best way for democracies to win influence with 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. Instead they are getting the infrastructure support, the trade and development support from pro-freedom, pro-democracy nations.”
Truss, 46, said security pacts could augment trade deals, pointing to Britain’s request to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which includes countries as diverse as Mexico and Vietnam.

“Some countries we will be able to enter deeper security arrangements with than others. One thing I know from being trade secretary for two years is that the UK is hugely trusted. People know we are reliable and when we say we will do something we do it, we follow the rules.”

This is all clearly about the containment of China but Truss, one of the most outspoken cabinet ministers, appears to have had a diplomacy chip inserted and will not say so explicitly. “It’s about the advancement of freedom,” she smiles. “It’s a positive strategy to engage other countries who want to see a free enterprise, open, free trading world succeed. It’s a positive strategy to build economic strength.”

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Much more in the article linked below, but mostly concerning Britain's local politics:

The Times & The Sunday Times

News and opinion from The Times & The Sunday Times

www.thetimes.co.uk

COMMENTS:

To prevent any confusion, I truly don't expect there to be any sharing of strategic technologies on the level of AUKUS with either of the three countries specifically named, for a multitude of reasons. India, their own nuclear submarine program is too far gone and too incompatible with Western technologies, would not make any economic or strategic sense to change everything at this point, not to mention its officially a non-Ally. Japan is too close to China geographically, that, combined with the JMSDF's preferred tactic of ambush-hunting along the First Island Chain makes SSNs not as lucrative a proposition as they could be for Australia - for whom range & endurance are of paramount importance, again thanks to geography. Canada, I frankly don't see why they'd need SSNs at this point when they didn't at the height of the Cold War. Unless the Russian Navy is hugely resurgent (beyond Cold War levels) to the point where USN+RN+FN are unable to handle the numbers, RCN is not going nuclear.

However, what these proposed "security pacts" ARE likely to translate into can probably be summarized by three words:

Maritime Domain Awareness.

...and that includes every pair of eyes & ears from the seabed to geostationary orbit. Those familiar with likes of SOSUS will know exactly what I'm talking about. The "Fish Hook" seabed hydrophone array (managed by US-IN-JP) already covers everything from southern coast of South Korea to India's Andaman islands, and may be extended/supplemented with some more arrays.

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The common fleet of P-8 MPA surveillance aircraft operated by US, AU, IN & UK (the former 3 already jointly exercised these platforms to build interoperability) as well as satellite/geospatial intelligence sharing need no mention.

Why these things? Because you can't ensure the flow of smooth trade transit (or conversely, choke the flow) until & unless you know exactly where the perceived enemy is at all times. Secretary Truss wants to ensure security of trade routes? That starts with the 3 words I mentioned before - Maritime Domain Awareness.

 

[RogerRanger]

Appreciate this post.

For me as someone who wants Britain to free ourselves from American domination and the global order, I would oppose what the British government is currently trying to do by folding our military/economic/culture into the American Empire, in order to get leverage and protection from the Americans. In effective this is the weak/cheap option for Britain. Rather than breaking out and striving to follow our own power and geo-political strength.