The recent Integrated Review caught headlines for reversing cuts to the UK’s stock of nuclear warheads. Paul Rogers argues that we should be more concerned about the expansion of potential options for their use and the growing opacity of nuclear decision-making.
Militarism and the Climate Crisis: The Imperative for Action
War and climate change are intimately linked, argues Brian Larkin. He explains why he and fellow activists from XR Peace blockaded BAE Systems London headquarters in 2019 over its links to the bombing of Yemeni civilians and the UK nuclear weapons programme.
The Infinite Review: Global Britain and its Competitive Priorities
The UK Government’s Integrated Review sets an ambitious agenda to be a contender in an era of global competition. Unshackled from Europe, everything seems to be a priority. Richard Reeve argues that, for all the talk of its soft and scientific superpowers, the opportunity to save the world and protect and serve its people has been wasted.
The Case for a Human Security Strategy
Between Covid and climate catastrophe, 2021 is a time of intense human insecurity. With neither Government nor Opposition likely to develop a strategy that addresses this, Richard Reeve argues that it's high time the UK had a human security strategy.
Force for Good?: The Politics of Military Spending
One year after a decisive election and on the verge of a definitive break with the EU, there is still little substance to the government’s Global Britain slogan. The three big political parties are talking about the UK’s future role in the world, says Richard Reeve, but do any have a compelling vision for how the country can work collaboratively for sustainable global change?
Time for a National Strategy for the Next Generations
The time is ripe for a new approach to national strategy that thinks long-term and puts the participation and wellbeing of the public at its heart, says Sophie Middlemiss, as she shares the initial findings of the National Strategy for the Next Generations project.
Report of ‘Radically Rethinking Security’ Workshop
Richard Reeve reflects on a workshop that broadened the Rethink Security network by bringing academic specialists together with policy and practice experts from civil society to formulate a radical rethinking of UK foreign and security policy.
Sustainable Security: Defining, Measuring and Building Security after Covid-19
Abigail Watson and Alasdair McKay make the case for Sustainable Security, incorporating a broader range of risk drivers and responses than the national security approach. Embracing this would be an opportunity for the UK to strategise a more secure society and world after Covid-19.
Pandemic exposes government security failure
Kate Hudson exposes the sustained and deadly failure of UK government to invest in responding to the security threats, including pandemics and natural disasters, that its own analysis has prioritised.
Shared Security: Humans and Humanity in National Security Policy
In this article from a new volume on building a values-based foreign policy for the UK, Jonathan Cohen, Teresa Dumasy and Richard Reeve argue that a new security strategy should put at its heart the wellbeing of people and the shared security of the planet and humanity.
Security Policy Review: Time for public debate
As the UK prepares to rewrite its national security strategy, Diana Francis argues that the people must have their say on their own security and who pays the price for UK ‘security’ policy abroad.