Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has urged European nations to work together in improving security across the EU, whilst also taking the opportunity to reaffirm the role NATO has to play.
Reassurring European partners during an informal EU Defence Ministerial meeting in Bratislava, Mr Fallon has spoken of how the UK will continue to play a proactive role in security, addressing challenges from mass migration to cyber-attacks. He also dismissed the idea of a European Army, saying that:
Nato must remain the cornerstone of our defence and the defence of Europe.”
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said: “We’re leaving the EU, not leaving Europe, but it’s in our national interest to strengthen security. We’re stepping up our efforts with the Royal Navy in the southern Mediterranean tackling illegal migration, people smuggling and arms trafficking.”
At the ministerial Mr Fallon also signed a Joint Declaration aimed at turning commitments into practical outcomes in areas such as maritime cooperation, cyber collaboration and stepping up efforts to counter hybrid attacks.
The Defence Secretary also took the chance to promote the UK’s Defence Growth Partnership and encourage a competitiveness within the European defence industry, highlighting the innovation and new technologies coming from smaller UK based companies and how these SMEs are being brought into the defence supply chain. He urged his fellow secretaries to bring this competitiveness and opportunity to the EU defence supply chain.
Mr Fallon added: “Three months on from the EU vote, we’re doing more in the world, not less. Our F35 planes, the world’s most advanced fighter jets, made their debut at the Farnborough Air Show – alongside multi-billion pound investments in attack helicopters and maritime patrol aircraft. And in Warsaw at the NATO summit the UK committed 500 troops to Estonia to defend NATO’s eastern flank and pledged to continue transforming the Alliance to meet the challenges both from East and the South.”
Image: Defence Secretary Michael Fallon met with European defence ministers in Bratislava to promote tackling migration and terrorism. Picture: British Embassy Slovakia.
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