Russia and the UK: How Labour can build on the Integrated Review

Top lines

When dealing with the Kremlin, the Conservative Government is tough in rhetoric and weak in action – the worst possible combination. The Integrated Review was no exception to this rule and constituted yet another missed opportunity to provide an innovative strategy not only for the amorphous threats posed by the Kremlin but also to identify areas of – and terms for – engagement.

Under Keir Starmer the Labour Party has shown it is willing to address issues such as illegal financial transactions. This marks a contrast with current and previous Conservative Governments, whose ability to respond adequately to Russian threats has been constrained by their refusal to take illicit finance and malign influence seriously.

As Whitehall looks to implement the Integrated Review, this is a good chance for Labour to expose the Government's vacuity and demand concrete actions in five key areas: 

• Engagement and UK soft power;

• Economic crime and illicit finance; 

• Traditional defence;

• Cyberspace and disinformation; 

• The UK skill shortage: a lack of Russia expertise.

Ultimately, there is very little the UK can do to influence what happens inside Russia, but the British Government can reduce its own vulnerability to the security threats posed by Russia and improve the image we project to the Russian population.

Both areas desperately need to be addressed and both require a genuine commitment to embodying values rather than embellishing Britain’s national ego, a skill the current Conservative leadership has yet to learn.

Image: Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers address at the conference of Russian Federation ambassadors and permanent representatives, Moscow, 30 June 2016. Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs via Flickr.