Rishi Sunak: Only the Conservatives can protect you from the Axis of Evil that threaten us
Only the Conservatives can be trusted to keep Britain safe in the face of a more dangerous world, writes Prime Minister Rishi Sunak
Last night I joined other world leaders for the Ukraine peace summit.
I was there to offer my support to President Zelensky and to make clear that aggression cannot, and will not, prevail.
The valour and sacrifice of the Ukrainian people has been truly humbling. They are prepared to die to make life worth living, to ensure that they determine who governs them not Vladimir Putin.
In this country, we should be so proud of all that we have done to support Ukraine. For almost a decade, we have been training Ukrainian forces. When Russian troops massed on their border, Boris Johnson and Ben Wallace rushed equipment to Ukraine which helped them to halt the Russian advance. As Prime Minister, I have been proud to expand our backing for Ukraine: we were the first country to provide Ukraine with Western battle tanks and the first to send long range missiles. Our support has enabled Ukraine to push back the Russian Black Sea fleet and resume grain exports.
The Ukrainians are fighting for values we share: for the right to determine their our future, for freedom, for democracy. Russia, by contrast, is fighting a war of brutal aggression. Putin has no regard for civilian life or the life of his own troops who are sustaining huge loses in this campaign.
No country should be aiding Russia. But, in a reminder of how much more uncertain our world is becoming, the axis of authoritarian states are: China through its ‘unlimited partnership’ with Russia is helping it to try and circumvent the sanctions that we and our allies have imposed on the Kremlin’s war machine. Iran is providing the drones with which Russia attempts to terrorise Ukrainian cities. And North Korea has sent Russia ammunition.
In this more dangerous world, we must take steps to protect ourselves. That is why we will invest 2.5 percent of GDP in defence by 2030. Our increase in defence investment will not only fire up our defence industrial base—creating good jobs here at home from Barrow to Lossiemouth to Salisbury—but allow us to stand up for our interests, deter our enemies and defend our values. I worry that Labour have not committed to matching our increase in defence spending, choosing instead to keep the civil service at its bloated post-Covid size. It is only we Conservatives, with our iron resolve, who can be trusted to keep Britain safe.
The Ukrainians are fighting for their democratic freedoms, for the right to determine who governs them. Their bravery should remind us how blessed we are to live in this country where we get to elect our representatives, to choose our own government. When we go to the polling station on July 4th, let us remember that.
