Liz Truss has warned against pushing for a peace settlement with Russia over Ukraine before Vladimir Putin’s troops leave the country.
In a strongly worded speech on the sidelines of the Nato summit in Madrid, the UK’s Foreign Secretary also called on the West to boost support for Taiwan, amid concerns that China could launch an invasion of the island state.
“It’s absolutely imperative that we secure Russia’s defeat in Ukraine,” Ms Truss said at a session of the Nato public forum. “And it’s imperative for the sake of European security, freedom and democracy, and it’s the only way that we are going to achieve a lasting peace in Europe.
“There are some who are saying that there could be some possibility of negotiations now whilst Russia is still in Ukraine, but I think that would bring a false peace and it would lead to further aggression in the future.
“My very strong message is we have to defeat Russia first, and negotiate later.”
Nato’s two day summit is set to agree a new 10 year straegic concept which will mark a major overhal of the Western alliance’s defences in Europe to meet the Russian threat. It will also, for the first time, acknowledge the security challenges poased by a more aggressive Beijing.
Ms Truss said the West needed to learn the lessons from Ukraine and step up support for Taiwan now.
She said: “We’ve seen increased collaboration between Russia and China and we know that China is watching Ukraine closely. They’re expanding their military capability and they’re extending their global influence.
“I do think that with China extending its influence through economic coercion and building a capable military there is a real risk that they draw the wrong idea which results in a catastrophic miscalculation such as invading Taiwan.
“That is exactly what we saw in the case of Ukraine, a strategic miscalculation by Putin, so this is why it’s so important that the free world work together to help ensure that Taiwan is able to defend itself and to stress the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”
