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A New Pragmatism: Navigating the UK’s Changing Foreign Policy Priorities under the Labour Government

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Muhammad Qasim

Analysis Series

Analysis//0013/April/2026/London-Dialogue. 30 April 2026

Introduction

The overwhelming victory of the Labour Party in July 2024 was not just a change in domestic governance but a complete change in the way the United Kingdom presents itself as a power on the global stage. Under the Labour government, the UK has shifted beyond the post-Brexit period of Global Britain, frequently derided as a quest to find a role with no obvious anchor to a doctrine of Progressive Realism.

This policy is based on the assumption that Britain should be realistic about the world as it is and not as we want it to be. It is Euro-Atlantic-centric, aims at a radical reset with the European Union and is dealing with a more complex “Special Relationship” with the United States that has become more transactional and protectionist.

Defence and Security: The Euro-Atlantic Pivot

The security policy of the Labour government is developed based on the idea that security is the foundation of opportunity. Starmer on assuming office immediately commissioned a Strategic Defence Review (SDR), which was chaired by former NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson. This review serves as the intellectual framework of a “NATO-first” policy.

British maritime policy during previous Conservative administrations was based on the so-called Indo-Pacific Tilt. Although Labour has not given up on the region, the maintenance of the AUKUS partnership in the region has been given a clear re-prioritisation. Starmer has contended that as Russia continues its aggression, the UK has a major role to play in the High North, the North Atlantic and the Baltic States. The government has promised to allocate 2.5% of the GDP to defence, but this has not been presented as a military need but as a demonstration of British leadership in a European pillar of NATO.

There has also been a shift in Labour towards a defence industrial strategy which aims at trying to tie military expenditure to domestic economic growth. The government is also keen to make sure that the Arsenal of Democracy is not weakened by prioritising the manufacturing of new capabilities in the UK. This is seen in the Trinity House Agreement with Germany which goes beyond mere cooperation to include the joint development of long-range strike weapons and a promise of placing German aircraft in the UK to patrol the seas, something that was inconceivable ten years ago.

Standing tall with Europe

The ironclad priority of the foreign policy of the Labour Party is to support Ukraine. Sir Keir Starmer has always said that a Russian win would be a fatal setback to the international rules-based order. This is supported by the fact that it has been delivering high-end military hardware in a consistent manner.
On his surprise visit to Kyiv in early 2025 to sign a 100-year deal with Ukraine. Keir Starmer said, “The 100-year agreement underpinned Britain’s “steadfast support” for Ukraine” as he reiterated European unity in the face of Russian aggression. In late 2025, the UK declared another 600 million air defence bundle to Ukraine, featuring advanced automated turrets and sensors. The UK is also leading in the capability coalitions within NATO in terms of drone technology and training of pilots. In this way, Labour is not only making the UK a donor but also the key architect of the future military architecture of Ukraine so that Kyiv is NATO-interoperable well before it becomes a member.

The diplomatic re-engagement with Brussels is perhaps the most obvious shift that has occurred under the Labour government. Starmer has been seeking a new era of cooperation with the EU after years of friction over the Northern Ireland Protocol and regulatory divergence.
The UK-EU Security Pact is proposed as the center of this reset. This agreement is supposed to address a spectrum of non-traditional security threats such as energy security, climate change and the so-called illegal migration. The Labour government sees this as a means of repairing the broken relationship left behind by Brexit without going over the red lines of rejoining the Single Market or the Customs Union.

The rationale is practical: as the US may start to withdraw some of its security umbrella over Europe, the UK and the EU share a common interest in developing a pillar of security that is European. This has been accompanied by a scramble of bilateral treaties, including the one with Germany and France, which are building blocks to a broader institutional agreement with the European Commission. Although the relationship between the US and the UK is still the Special Relationship, the re-election of Donald Trump to the White House in early 2025 has caused a lot of diplomatic turbulence. The Progressive Realism of Labour has been tested, and London attempts to keep her alliance without compromising on her principles.

One of the biggest and unforeseen hot spots was the US ambitions to acquire or control Greenland. After President Trump took a renewed interest in the Arctic land due to its strategic mineral resources, Washington pressured its NATO members to back up a new Arctic security setup. However, Starmer was a strong supporter of the Danish government. In early 2026, he said, “Only Greenland should decide its future. Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark must decide the future of Greenland and only Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark.” Sir Keir Starmer added, “And Denmark is a close ally in Europe; it is a NATO ally, and it’s very important that the future of Greenland is for the Kingdom of Denmark and for Greenland itself and only for Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark.” This was a principled position that caused a direct conflict with the White House, which threatened to retaliate by imposing tariffs. The refusal of Starmer to give way was a sign of a UK government that was ready to put international law above transactional diplomatic convenience.

Sovereign Policy towards Middle East

The situation has also been heating up in the Middle East. Whereas the US has been following the policy of maximum pressure on Tehran, the UK under the Labour Party has been a supporter of the Middle Way. In early 2026, Starmer made an oral statement on Iran, after the US-led attacks on Iranian infrastructure, stating the UK would not engage in offensive action.  He also said, addressing the House of Commons, “We have learned from the mistakes of the past. We were not involved in the initial strikes, and we will not join offensive US strikes.”  He said in the Parliamentary Liaison Committee that the “Iran conflict was “not our war” and that there had to be a ‘lawful basis’ for any UK involvement.” This selective alignment has irritated Washington but has been received with open arms in European capitals, which has further solidified the UK as a buffer between the two Atlantic sides. This free hand can also be observed in the changing attitude of the UK towards the recognition of the State of Palestine whereby Labour has expressed that it will go ahead despite the US standpoint as long as it contributes to a two-state solution.
The UK under Labour has strategically decided to be a “European leader” first and a “global player” second. The effectiveness of this policy will be determined by whether Starmer can still find his way through the Trumpian changes in US policy and at the same time manage to incorporate the UK into a new European security framework. Through his position on Greenland and Iran, efforts to reset relations with the EU, and his ironclad support for Ukraine, Starmer is trying to demonstrate that a post-Brexit Britain can be independent, principled, and, most importantly, realistic. The world is getting more dangerous, and the “Progressive Realism” of Labour is a high-stakes bid to make sure that the UK is not merely a witness of history but an active and sovereign participant in the making of history.

Muhammad Qasim is Assistant Researcher at London Dialogue.

Picture of Muhammad Qasim

Muhammad Qasim

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