Britain: Still Searching for Its Place in the World
London is once again embarking on a redefinition of its global role.
By: Geopolitical Futures
By Francesco Casarotto
In 1962, U.S. Secretary of State Dean Acheson said, “Great Britain has lost an empire but not yet found a role.” Acheson’s comment perfectly described Britain’s position in the world since 1945, when London lost its place as the world’s premier maritime power to the United States. The fundamental geopolitical question that has faced Britain ever since is how to engage with Europe.
Its position on the periphery of Europe allows it to keep other European powers at arm’s length. Throughout its history, Britain has refrained from close integration with other European nations, the major exception being the period between the end of World War II and its exit from the European Union last year. Even as a member of the EU, it never shared Brussels’ vision for an “ever closer union,” fearing it would grow to be dominated by Germany, and opted out of critical integration initiatives like the Schengen zone and the euro. Today, Britain is once again embarking on a redefinition of its global role. In doing so, it’s looking to the Indo-Pacific and the so-called Global Britain strategy.
Britain’s Tilt to Asia
Last March, the British government published a paper called “Global Britain in a Competitive Age: the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy.” The document is meant to serve as a compass for Britain’s global strategy. The concept of “Global Britain” is aimed at least in part at restoring Britain’s role in the international system. It includes a redefinition of the main threats to British national interests and a new strategy to protect these interests.
Britain still sees Russia as the biggest threat to the security of Europe, and thus to itself, but the document released earlier this year calls China the “biggest state-based threat to the UK’s economic security.” That’s because Britain’s economic activity is steadily pivoting toward the Indo-Pacific, a region that London acknowledges as the engine of global economic growth and trade. It’s also a region where Beijing has outsized clout and influence over economic and trade activity.
It’s not hard to see why Britain is pivoting to the Indo-Pacific. Since its exit from the EU, trade between Britain and the bloc has consistently declined. According to the Office of National Statistics, between the fourth quarter of 2020 and the first quarter of 2021, goods imports from EU member states decreased by 21.7 percent while exports fell by 18.1 percent. While this contraction might be associated with the pandemic-induced downturn, there’s little doubt that the “Brexit effect” was also a contributor – especially because Britain’s trade with other markets in the same period was stronger. For example, goods imports from non-EU countries decreased by just 0.9 percent while exports grew by 0.4 percent. Moreover, according to figures set for release this week, Britain is expected to be left out of Germany’s top 10 trade partners for the first time since 1950. Prior to Brexit, it was Germany’s fifth-largest trade partner.
United Kingdom | EU vs. Extra-EU Trade
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Meanwhile, Britain’s economic ties to the Indo-Pacific have strengthened. In 2020, Britain signed new trade deals with Japan, Singapore and Vietnam, and last August, it began negotiations to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, a free trade deal encompassing Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. Meanwhile, it’s also enhancing economic and military cooperation with Australia and India, and drawing on its ties with former British Empire and current Commonwealth territories that have similar interests in the region.
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership
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Considering the presence of several maritime chokepoints in the Indo-Pacific that can, if blocked, restrict access to these markets, China’s rise and increasing assertiveness is seen as a potential threat to this strategy. In other words, last March’s strategic review was a way of demonstrating Britain’s commitment to protecting the Indo-Pacific and containing the Chinese threat.
The Royal Navy’s Rejuvenation
Britain has also shown its commitment by deploying its Royal Navy to strategically important locations, joining a number of countries that have sent naval forces to the Indo-Pacific to secure sea lanes and contain Chinese ambitions. As part of Operation Fortis, Britain’s Carrier Strike Group 21, led by the new HMS Queen Elizabeth, departed from England in May for the Indo-Pacific. The group was joined by the USS The Sullivans destroyer and the Dutch HNLMS Evertsen frigate. In July, Britain’s defense minister also announced that two warships would be permanently deployed in the region by the end of the year.
The Royal Navy has long been a major part of Britain’s strategy to secure maritime trade, a critical component of any island nation’s economy. Therefore, the navy has been undergoing a rejuvenation in an effort to reverse a decadeslong decline that began around the end of the Cold War. Its deterioration was partly the result of Britain’s prioritization of its land forces with the beginnings of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It’s now hoping that the navy’s modernization will lend credibility to the Global Britain strategy.
In 2017 and 2019, the HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carriers were commissioned. (Britain’s three Invincible-class carriers were retired in the early 2010s.) Capable of carrying up to 36 F-35 fighters, the two vessels are the highlights of the Royal Navy’s revamp. In addition, the Vanguard-class nuclear submarines will be replaced by the early 2030s with new Dreadnaught-class submarines, which, like their predecessors, will carry Trident II ballistic missiles. Last March, Britain announced that it would also replace its Type 45 destroyers with Type 83 destroyers by the late 2030s.
Global Britain is essentially an expansion of Britain’s interests and its ability to defend them. Its pivot to the Indo-Pacific and its naval modernization plans are examples of this expansion. However, “global” doesn’t mean “alone.” London still needs regional partners and, more important, the United States to contain China and defend its interests in the Indo-Pacific. The Royal Navy isn’t strong enough to neutralize potential threats to British interests. So while the strategic review contributes to London’s expanded global role, it won’t restore Britain as a maritime powerhouse.
