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Select Committee · Defence Committee

UK Defence and the Indo-Pacific

Status: Closed Opened: 31 Jan 2022 Closed: 24 Jan 2024 11 recommendations 2 conclusions 1 report

This inquiry will examine the UK’s tilt to the Indo-Pacific region, as set out in the Integrated Review. The region is widely recognised as being of growing importance. The inquiry will assess UK Defence’s standing in the region. The inquiry will also look at the UK’s potential routes to strengthening its relationships in the region, …

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Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Eleventh Report - UK Defence and the Indo-Pacific HC 183 24 Oct 2023 13 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

3 items
2 Recommendation Eleventh Report - UK Defence and the In… Rejected

Assess China under CCP to determine its threat level to national security

The Committee supports the Government’s assessment that China under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is “an epoch-defining and systemic challenge”. China seeks to erode the current rules-based international order by exploiting weaknesses in the system. Rather than looking to act as the world’s policeman in a mutually beneficial system, China’s …

Government response. The government explicitly disagrees with the need for an assessment to label China, stating it would be impossible, impractical, and unwise to sum up China in one word.
Ministry of Defence
12 Conclusion Eleventh Report - UK Defence and the In… Rejected

Defence's Indo-Pacific 'Tilt' remains under-resourced and far from achieved

Defence was only a small element of the so-called Indo-Pacific ‘Tilt’ outlined in the 2021 Integrated Review and the Defence Command Paper. The result has been a modest increase in UK military presence in the region. This has manifested primarily through increased presence in the region of naval capabilities, and …

Government response. The government notes the Committee's criticism but rejects the notion that the 'tilt' has not been achieved, stating that Defence has met its ambitions through partnerships, integration, and persistent presence, with the 2025 Carrier Strike Group return building on these …
Ministry of Defence
13 Recommendation Eleventh Report - UK Defence and the In… Rejected

Create dedicated Indo-Pacific strategy including defence response to China and Tilt aims

The UK Government’s future strategy for the Indo-Pacific is still unclear. The Government should create a dedicated Indo-Pacific strategy, which sets out how military instruments can be used in support of the UK’s wider pursuit of its goals and interests in the region in peacetime and during conflict. Within this …

Government response. The government rejects the need for a dedicated Indo-Pacific strategy, stating that its vision and strategic intent are already outlined in existing Integrated Review and Defence Command Paper publications.
Ministry of Defence

Oral evidence sessions

3 sessions
Date Witnesses
17 Jan 2023 Brigadier (ret.) Ben Barry · International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), John Hemmings · Pacific Forum, Seth Jones · Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Veerle Nouwens · Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) View ↗
6 Sep 2022 Dr Marcus Hellyer · Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), Dr Rob Yates · University of Bristol, Mr Ben Bland · Chatham House (Asia-Pacific Programme), Professor Rory Medcalf · The Australian National University View ↗
7 Jun 2022 Meia Nouwens · International Institute for Strategic Studies, Professor Alessio Patalano · Kings College London, Department of War Studies, Professor Steve Tsang · SOAS China Institute View ↗