Date : 25/03/2026 | Time : 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm |
This talk will be on Zoom. The talk is free but you do need to book a place using the form below to get access details. Please ignore references to payment.
Not since the Second World War has the Defence Relationship between the UK and the US come under such scrutiny as now, in the era of the Trump Presidency. Timeworn assumptions about our most important defence alliance are being questioned and decades old ways of doing things are being overturned as we scramble to understand the implications of Trump’s actions along with the realignment of the World’s powers.
And from a US perspective, the relevance of the UK as a defence partner has surely been diminished by our failure to invest adequate sums in defence in recent years and the consequent reduced state of our armed forces and other defence capabilities. So too has our reliability as an ally been called into question by incidents such as our refusal to let US jets use British bases for their recent bombing missions on Iran and our less than wholehearted support for the US / Israeli attack on Iran launched on 28 February.
Sir Michael will give us his insights on the current status of the UK – US Defence Relationship and what the future might hold.
Sir Michael Fallon is a former UK Secretary of State for Defence and Minister for Energy. In a thirty-one year political career he served in the
governments of Margaret Thatcher, John Major, David Cameron and Theresa May.
Sir Michael was Defence Secretary when Russia invaded Crimea in 2014 and sent British troops to train the Ukrainian army. He led the UK’s role in the international Coalition against the Daesh in Iraq and Syria from 2014 to 2017. He was responsible for the UK’s Strategic Defence Review in 2015, and championed the NATO Alliance, working with three successive US Defence Secretaries.
Sir Michael continues to write and broadcast on defence and security issues and is a frequent speaker at security conferences in the UK and Europe. He is a member of the advisory boards at the Council for Geostrategy and the Centre for Policy Studies.
Sir Michael retired from Parliament in 2019. He chairs the aerospace and defence fund at BlueFive Capital and is also chairman of Aberdeen Investcorp Infrastructure Partners and a director of other companies.
Booking Process: Please register for the talk below. The talk is free but you do need to book a place to get access details. Please ignore references to payment.
Any queries about the booking should be sent to admin@harknessfellows.org.uk or call Lizzie on 07415 322811.
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