Conference notes

A. That support for NATO and for Article 5 (mutual defence) has been the cornerstone of UK foreign and security policy since 1949;

B. That Russia under President Putin has made repeated cyber attacks and airspace incursions on independent countries in the Baltic region, and has sponsored aggression in Ukraine and purported to annex Crimea in violation of international law;

C. Comments by Jeremy Corbyn and Donald Trump distancing themselves from the NATO commitment to come to the defence of any NATO member who is attacked.

Conference believes

i) that NATO remains a vital part of both our national security and of that of many of our EU allies.

ii) that statements resiling from NATO treaty commitments made by leaders can only embolden our opponents, and thereby weaken our security and that of our allies;

iii) that Donald Trump's election as US president has weakened the US commitment to European defence, while recognising that it is a long-standing US demand that Europe should carry more of its own weight.

iv) the UK's conventional forces provide a key element of our national deterrent strategy,

v) that the forces of isolation and national chauvinism are not content with the Brexit vote but will continue to seek to undermine other international institutions where the UK co-operates for mutual advantage, such as NATO.

vi) that the Leave campaign in the EU referendum can now be seen to have been mistaken in taking NATO mutual defence for granted, when deriding the contribution of the EU to peace in Europe.

Conference calls for

1. The UK to remain a member of NATO, and clarity that the UK will continue to meet our collective security treaty commitments to our allies;

2. An explicit commitment to defend the Baltic states in the event of Russian aggression;

3. Additional UK conventional force deployments to the Baltic region to reassure our allies of our commitment and to deter Russia.

4. The UK to maintain its defence relationships with EU members, particularly France.