America first means Britain needs a customs union with Europe
Whatever one thinks of Brexit, industrial goods were always the area where it made least sense for Britain to go it alone. And now that it’s clear Europe can no longer rely on America, deepening cooperation on defence production is a no-brainer, says Will Cooling
It has only been four weeks since Donald Trump’s second presidency began, and already it feels like we’re living in a very different world. Whether it’s picking fights with its closest neighbours over trade and territory, unilaterally entering into negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine, or repeatedly endorsing the British and European far-right, this is a very different America to the one that proudly called itself the “indispensable nation”.
So provocative was the behaviour of Trump’s administration at the Munich Security Conference that, yesterday, Britain and European leaders met for an emergency summit in Paris; the geopolitical equivalent of needing a holiday to recover from your holiday. Sir Keir Starmer underlined the severity of the situation by using a newspaper editorial to preannounce not just his determination to increase military spending, but his willingness to send British troops to Ukraine to enforce any peace settlement.
It says everything about how fundamentally things have changed in less than a month, that these pledges should be just the tip of the iceberg. Britain and Europe are not just facing America’s withdrawal from this side of the Atlantic, but the possibility that the Trump Administration’s erratic cuts to the federal government will massively reduce the capacity of America’s diplomats and soldiers and also hollow out its industrial and scientific base. This is particularly alarming, because America was already struggling to fulfil orders for munitions that several European countries had placed.
An America-less military-industrial complex
If there is to be a real push to increase defence spending in Britain and Europe to facilitate both American withdrawal and peace in Ukraine, then there is going to have to be significant investment in creating a shared production base. Not only does Britain need to rectify the problems with our own military procurement systems that have caused so many delays and so much wastage within the ministry of defence over recent years, but we need to ensure that Europe does not follow French calls to turn rearmament into nothing more than a glorified jobs creation programme. We should be advocating not just collaboration between Britain and the Europeans, but where it makes sense, making the most of the capabilities of allies overseas such as Japan and South Korea who have stronger specialisms in areas such as shipbuilding.
To play a full part in not just these discussions but actually participating in the America-less military-industrial complex we would be trying to build, would require removing barriers to trade between us and the EU. This would be a wrenching break with our policies over the past four years, but then again, whatever one thinks of Brexit, industrial goods were always the area where it made least sense for Britain to go it alone. Whereas the English language and our strength in the professions makes Britain a global services superpower, and historic relationships with Canada and Australasia mean we’ve long been willing to import cheap food from overseas, manufacturing had been thoroughly integrated into the broader single market. Given the need to source parts from across Britain and Europe, and the reluctance of manufacturers to develop different products for markets so close together, it was never clear what opportunities Brexit created for heavy industry. That’s even truer in a world where America is only a bad tweet away from imposing sweeping tariffs on any country – friend or foe.
It would be fair to say that Labour’s attempts to reset relations with Europe have floundered, both because they have not outlined a clear vision for an improved relationship, and the Europeans have focused on trying to unpick the things they most dislike about Brexit such as Britain no longer participating in the free movement of people or the Common Fisheries Policy. Maybe the events of the past weekend provide the contours of a deal that makes sense for both sides, enhanced cooperation in defence production so that Britain and Europe can secure themselves and Ukraine, whilst also renewing Britain’s integral role in European industry.
Will Cooling writes about politics and pop culture at It Could be Said Substack