UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said that British foreign policy must establish itself with strength on the world stage to meet the challenges.
«Our adversaries and competitors plan for the long term. In the face of these challenges, short-termism or wishful thinking will not suffice,» warns the British head of government, according to a speech he will deliver to business leaders and diplomats in London on Monday in what will be his first foreign policy address since coming to power.
«So we will take an evolutionary leap in our approach. This means being stronger in the defense of our values and the openness on which our prosperity depends,» Sunak will explain on the eve of the speech, as reported by the Guardian newspaper. In this sense, the premier has indicated that he will base his years at the head of the Treasury to argue that the country’s strength abroad must be backed by a strong economy from London.
Thus, Sunak has opted for a «solid pragmatism» as opposed to a policy of «great rhetoric». «It means generating a stronger economy at home, because that is the basis of our strength abroad. And it means confronting our competitors, not with grand rhetoric but with solid pragmatism,» he said.
With this long-term pragmatic policy, he seeks to compete with Russia and China, while seeking to deepen partnerships with other parts of the world such as the Indo-Pacific region.
