Lords committee launches inquiry to examine implications of the war in Ukraine on UK Defence
Monday 26 February 2024
On Wednesday 28 February 2024, the House of Lords International Relations and Defence Committee will hold the first evidence session of its new short inquiry examining the interim lessons that can be drawn from the war in Ukraine for UK Defence. The inquiry will explore a range of issues including whether assumptions regarding the nature of the Russian threat are still valid, and the UK’s capability to respond to it. In this first session, the Committee will seek to identify the key strategic and operational lessons from the war in Ukraine.
The session will start at 10:45am and will be available to watch live or on demand at Parliament TV, or attend in person in Committee Room 2, Palace of Westminster.
Giving evidence will be:
10.45am
- Professor Malcolm Chalmers, Deputy Director General, Royal United Services Institute (RUSI)
- Shashank Joshi, Defence Editor, The Economist.
Questions will include:
- How do we need to reconceptualise the nature of the threat that Russia represents to UK and NATO security in light of its invasion of Ukraine?
- What are the implications of this for maintaining (or re-establishing) credible deterrence?
- How feasible is it for the UK and its European allies to maintain larger weapon stocks and industrial slack to enable the ramping up of production in the future? What would be the trade-offs from doing so?
• How transformational have drones been for the way war is fought in Ukraine?
• Are the Government and the UK Armed Forces taking enough practical steps to understand and act on the lessons of the war in Ukraine?
