UK Ministry of Defence: Strategic Defence Review ()

Key Chapter Title List

1. Introduction and Overview
2. The Rationale for Transformation: The Strategic Environment and the Current State of Defence
3. The Role and Position of UK Defence
4. Transforming the UK's Way of Warfare
5. Allies and Partnerships
6. Homeland Defence and Resilience: A Whole-of-Society Approach
7. The Integrated Force: A Force for 21st Century Warfare
8. Defence Reform: Laying the Foundation for Success
9. Appendix: The Review Process

Document Introduction

This report is the complete outcome of the first "root and branch" Strategic Defence Review (SDR) conducted by the UK government in the 25 years since the end of the Cold War. Authorised by the UK Prime Minister in July 2024 and led by an external independent review panel—comprising former NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson, General Sir Richard Barrons, and Dr. Fiona Hill—the review took eleven months to complete. It extensively consulted over 1,700 individuals and organisations, held nearly 50 high-level expert challenge panel sessions, and incorporated insights from "citizen panel" field visits, resulting in this transformative roadmap designed to address security challenges in the mid-to-late 21st century.

The core diagnosis of the report is that the UK is entering a new era of heightened threats and unprecedented uncertainty. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine marks the return of interstate war in Europe, while the actions of China, Iran, North Korea, and others pose persistent challenges. Rapid and unpredictable technological change is reshaping the character of warfare. The report notes that while UK defence retains a global reputation and professionalism, its size, readiness, and operational models remain deeply shaped by the post-Cold War demands of expeditionary and counter-terrorism operations. It suffers from significant "hollowness" and is ill-suited for the potential demands of high-intensity, protracted conflict with "peer" military powers.

To this end, the review proposes a new vision for 2035: to forge the UK into a "technology-enabled, leading defence power, with an integrated force that deters, fights, and wins through continuous innovation at wartime tempo." Achieving this vision relies on three fundamental shifts: First, integration by design, moving from "joint" to "integrated," building an integrated combat force under the unified command of the Chief of the Defence Staff, underpinned by a common digital foundation and data, with lethality greater than the sum of its parts. Second, innovation-driven, by establishing a new partnership with industry, radically reforming procurement processes, and creating a dedicated UK Defence Innovation Organisation to absorb commercial and dual-use technologies at wartime speed. Third, whole-of-society engagement, strengthening homeland defence and resilience by expanding the Cadet Forces, establishing new mechanisms for protecting Critical National Infrastructure, proposing a Defence Preparedness Act, and other measures to rebuild national war readiness.

Regarding specific capability development, the report adheres to the core principle of "NATO First," emphasising that the UK must assume greater responsibility for Euro-Atlantic security. It systematically outlines transformation directions for capabilities across domains: nuclear deterrence, maritime, land, air, space, cyber, and electromagnetic. This includes maintaining and modernising the nuclear deterrent, creating a "Hybrid Carrier Air Group," achieving a tenfold increase in Army lethality through a "sense-strike" model, developing the Future Combat Air System, enhancing space control and decision advantage, and establishing a Cyber and Electromagnetic Activities Command to unify operations in that domain. Simultaneously, the report establishes defence reform as critical to the success of the transformation, endorsing and reinforcing the deep organisational restructuring already initiated by the Ministry of Defence.

This document is not merely a policy statement but an action plan containing 62 specific recommendations with clear timelines and assigned responsibilities. It marks a fundamental shift in UK defence strategy—from a post-Cold War mindset based on expeditionary intervention and the "peace dividend" to a new-era deterrence and defence paradigm centred on alliance primacy (NATO), integrated operations, technological innovation, and whole-of-society resilience.