Ukraine and Russia

Debate between Wes Streeting and Paul Foster

Thursday 10th September 2026 Commons Chamber

[Mr Paul Foster (South Ribble) (Lab)]

Will the Secretary of State please outline what assessment the Government have made of recent statements from Moscow regarding the United Kingdom?

[Wes Streeting]

There is a distinction to be drawn between what the Kremlin says and what it does: the performative displays we have seen from Russia in recent months—I think particularly about some of its actions in the channel—and the actual threats we deal with, deter and repel on a daily basis. The British people should be in no doubt about the threat and intent of Russia, but they should also draw confidence from our capability. We have been debating actively in this House, and we ought to debate it more widely as a country, how we maintain our ability to deter and how we build our capability to respond to evolving threats, given the way in which modern warfare is changing, as we are seeing in Europe. The overall posture of the country ought to be to be alert to the Russian threat, but certainly not alarmed. I am proud of the capability we have, even as we seek to fund and build more.