The Network of Liberty - What the Foreign Secretary's Speech Told Us

Author: Ryan Baldry, Communications Manager

In her first major policy speech as Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Secretary, Liz Truss today set out her vision of the UK’s future foreign policy.

Some key pillars of the Government’s new strategy will be around being unashamedly supportive of UK businesses by ensuring that they are involved and engaged, using development and investment to help promote democratic values and asking allies to step up support of multilateral institutions. British International Investment (formerly CDC) will focus on this theme of countering influence of other states by providing trusted finance from the United Kingdom which works to promote democratic values around the world in order to push the frontiers of freedom.

The Foreign Secretary also stated in her remarks that the Development Strategy will be published in early 2022 and will outline the ways in which development will be a key element of the UK’s foreign policy. Liz Truss did say that the strategy would focus on women and girls, a commitment to stepping up responses to humanitarian crises as well as supporting our belief in freedom and democracy

Technology will also be a key element of future foreign policy with the Foreign Secretary declaring that “We want to use technology as tools of liberation, our enemies use it for control.” Investment in quantum computing and future 6G connectivity will be key parts of this. Alongside this theme is that by increasing domestic investment in these areas in order to reduce reliance on other states for strategic resources and technologies.

The importance of forging new security partnerships and trading relationships around the world was another plank of the UK’s foreign policy as well as encouraging allies and partners to also forge their own partnerships to reduce their reliance on other states.

The Foreign Secretary concluded her remarks by stating that her message to the G7 Foreign Ministers this weekend in Liverpool is “time to get on the front foot and advance frontier of freedom.”