Kemi Badenoch is set to warn foreign institutions that if they side with Britain’s enemies and foreign threats, they will see her walk away from them.
In a major foreign policy speech tomorrow, the leader will warn Britain is “not ready” for the current geopolitical crises, and will demand change.
Ms Badenoch will warn that membership of foreign institutions, such as the hated ECHR, must not threaten the defence of a country’s borders, values or people.
Blasting Britain’s current approach to international law, the Tory leader will say the UK “must stop being naive about international affairs”.
“We’ve let ourselves be fooled into believing that international law alone can keep
the peace. But when faced with a regime with no respect for the law, we need to be realistic.
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Ms Badenoch will set out her foreign policy agenda (Image: Getty)
“We can no longer simply put our trust in international partnerships or supranational institutions as ends in themselves.
“Where these work for us and deliver in our national interest we will embrace them.”
However she goes on to warn that if international bodies such as the ECHR and UN “are taken over by activists, or by autocratic regimes like China or , we must use our influence to stop them. And if that fails, we will need to disengage.”
She will deliver the remarks at the Policy Exchange think tank tomorrow morning, and explain why she is a “conservative realist” on foreign matters.
Ms Badenoch will explain: “Twenty years ago, Irving Kristol talked of a conservative being a liberal mugged by reality.”
“And, on foreign policy, that is exactly what I am: a conservative. Not a cosmopolitan internationalist. Not a supra-nationalist. Not a neo-con. But a conservative realist.
“Our foreign policy should seek to support our national interest. We should review those alliances, methods and approaches which have served our world well for three generations; working together to the greatest possible extent with those nations which share our values. But our sovereignty must be at the core of our foreign policy.”
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Ms Badenoch will oppose Donald Trump’s tariffs (Image: Getty)
Ms Badenoch’s speech comes at a time of rapid change for Europe and the west, with growing distrust of international institutions and the collapse of border security.
In a rebuke of the new German Chancellor’s attack on NATO yesterday, the Tory leader will reiterate her party’s commitment to NATO as “vital for European defence”.
Friedrich Merz suggested NATO may have to be radically reformed, or alternatively Europe will need to establish its own defence capability without US involvement.
“I am very curious to see how we are heading toward the Nato summit at the end of June,” he said. “Whether we will still be talking about Nato in its current form or whether we will have to establish an independent European defence capability much more quickly.”
She will also slap down ’s tariffs policy, the former Trade Secretary arguing the UK must “prioritise closer trading relationships with open economies, and as a trading nation we need to protect the rules that underpin global commerce.”
At the weekend Ms Badenoch said the would back moves by Labour to increase defence spending, provided the money is raised from cuts to welfare and by abandoning the costly handover of the Chagos Islands.