Last week, the British government announced an Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy (the Integrated Review) to set the tone for the country’s global strategy in the post-Brexit era. It is regarded as the most important review of its foreign and defence policies since the end of the Cold War. Of the plans proposed by the Integrated Review, the one that has aroused the most discussions is about increasing the overall cap on the number of nuclear warheads from 180 to 260 in the coming five years. As soon as the news was out, not only was the plan denounced strongly by domestic anti-nuclear groups in the UK, but it also drew strong reaction from the international community. The German foreign minister criticised the UK’s decision as running counter to international nuclear disarmament efforts. A UN spokesman even warned that London’s move could have a damaging impact on global stability and efforts to pursue a world free of nuclear weapons.
For many years, the UK has been one of those western countries which have made the loudest call for nuclear disarmament. Even last year, the British authorities still emphasised that the number of nuclear warheads in their inventory would decrease further from 225 to 180 by the middle of the 2020s. But this policy was changed unexpectedly by Johnson all of a sudden — the UK will expand its nuclear stockpile for the first time in more than thirty years.
Defence Secretary Wallace said on Sunday that in the last few years Russia has deployed new types of nuclear weapons and invested heavily in ballistic missile defence, thus the UK has to maintain its nuclear deterrent as a counterbalance. However, it is noteworthy that Wallace also mentioned the UK’s nuclear deterrent has to adapt to and reflect the current capabilities of ”the Russians and others”. What the word ”others” refers to has inevitably led to some speculations.
The core of ”Global Britain” suggested by Johnson’s government as the new positioning of the country is about ensuring the UK’s global influence in the post-Brexit era. The Integrated Review shows that the UK still wants to do more business with China after leaving the EU. The report names China a ”systemic challenge”. But the US-UK special relationship is still the axis of British foreign policy. The ”Indo-Pacific tilt” emphasised by the report reflects both a shift of the international stage’s gravity ”from the West to the East” and the fact that Britain will closely follow the lead of the US. The UK wants money from China but it also wants to collaborate with the US in constraining China. The room for improving the Sino-UK relationship will be limited.
明報社評 2021.03.23：英國大增核彈頭四成 中俄法不會無動於中
英國提出後脫歐時代外交國防新政策，放眼印太、提升軍力成為焦點，當中又以最多增加四成核彈頭最惹爭議，國防大臣華禮仕辯稱，提升核震懾能力是要抗衡俄羅斯。英國作為《核不擴散條約》締約國，冷戰後一直高舉裁核旗幟，道德高地站得太高，現在轉軚擴大核武庫存，為核子軍備競賽加柴添薪，當然招人話柄。世界格局面對百年不遇巨變，中美交鋒激烈，俄日英歐各有盤算動作頻頻，約翰遜政府欲以「全球化英國」作為國家新定位，確保英國在國際舞台佔一席位，「脫歐入亞」反映這一思路。「新英國」視俄羅斯為最大安全威脅，中國則是「體制競爭者」，倫敦當局既想與華做生意，但又想插足印太、配合美國制華，英國擴充核武，必添北京戒心。
上周英國政府發表《安全、防衛、發展及外交政策綜合評估》（下稱綜合報告），定調後脫歐時代英國的全球戰略，被視為冷戰後英國外交國防政策最重要檢討。綜合報告其中一項最多人議論的主張，是未來5年將核彈頭數量上限，由180枚增至260枚。消息一出，不僅英國國內反核團體強烈譴責，國際社會亦有很大迴響。德國外長批評，英國當局的決定，有違國際裁核努力，聯合國發言人更警告，英國此舉可損害全球穩定，亦不利國際無核化。
英國多年來都是高喊裁核最大聲的西方國家之一，去年當局還在強調，2020年代中，英國核彈頭庫存，將由225枚進一步降至180枚，沒料到約翰遜政策突改，30多年來首度增加核武庫。
周日國防大臣華禮仕說，近年俄羅斯既部署新型核武器，又大力加強彈道導彈防禦能力，英國需要維持核震懾力抗衡。然而值得留意的是，華禮仕亦提到，英國的核震懾力，需因應及反映「俄羅斯及其他（國家）」現時的能力。這個「其他」意指什麼，難免引來猜測。
約翰遜政府提出「全球化英國」作為國家新定位，核心就是要確保後脫歐時代英國在全球的影響力。綜合報告顯示，英國脫歐後仍想跟中國多做生意，報告稱呼中國「體制競爭者」，然而美英特殊關係，仍是英國外交核心。報告強調「向印太傾斜」，既反映國際舞台重心「西向東移」，同時亦折射英國會跟緊美國腳步。英國向華求財，又要配合美國制華，中英關係改善空間有限。
■/ Glossary 生字 /
subdue /səbˈdjuː/：to bring sb/sth under control
set the tone (for sth)：to establish a general character, attitude or atmosphere for sth
deploy /dɪˈplɔɪ/：to move soldiers or weapons into a position where they are ready for military action
■英語社評聲檔：link.mingpao.com/53000.htm