Committee to question former NATO official and experts on main outcomes of NATO summit and UK relationships with key European allies
This week the Committee will be continuing with its inquiry “Defence concepts and capabilities: from aspiration to reality”.
Following on the recent NATO summit in Madrid, in its first panel the Committee will discuss the most important summit outcomes for the present and future of global security from the perspective of the UK.
The second panel will explore in more depth the current defence and security outlook of Germany, France and the European Union, and inquire on what opportunities and challenges these key allies’ policies offer for the UK and NATO.
Meeting details
At 10.30am: Oral evidence
Inquiry
Defence concepts and capabilities: from aspiration to reality
NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Emerging Security Challenges (2010 – 2018)
Professor of International Politics at The University of Birmingham
At 11.30am: Oral evidence
Inquiry
Defence concepts and capabilities: from aspiration to reality
Senior Fellow and Director, Europe Program at Institut Montaigne
Professor of European & International Politics at King's College London
Possible Questions:
- Last week leaders of NATO Member States met in Madrid to discuss the most pressing security and defence issues facing the Alliance. What would you identify as the key outcomes of the summit? Were there any topics that should have been addressed but were not?
- One of the outcomes of last week’s NATO Summit was the publication of NATO’s new Strategic Concept. To what extent does it respond to the needs and expectations of the United Kingdom? To what extent does it align with the Integrated Review and Defence Command Paper?
- What is your assessment of the overall position of the UK within NATO? What is the scale of our influence? How effective is the UK in promoting its agenda within the organisation?
- What defence challenges does NATO face, how would you rank them, and how would you prioritise such NATO commitments vis-à-vis other threats the UK may face? To which of these challenges can the UK make a vital contribution, and are there any others where we should accept a lesser role?
- What is your assessment of the UK’s defence and security relationships with France, Germany, and any other European states you may wish to comment on? What are their most robust features? Where do you see room for improvement?