Readout of Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks' Meeting With UK Permanent Under Secretary for the Ministry of Defence David Williams at the U.S.-UK Defense Dialogue

Pentagon Spokesman Eric Pahon provided the following readout:

Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks and Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Christopher Grady attended the U.S.-UK Defense Dialogue in London, United Kingdom, today with Permanent Under Secretary for Defence David Williams and Vice Chief of the Defence Staff General Dame Sharon Nesmith to discuss advancement in key areas of partnership across strategy, industrial base resilience, capabilities development, and current events, to include Syria.

The strategy-focused portion of the dialogue included a discussion of the recently-announced UK Strategic Defense Review, cooperation on strategic readiness, and Russia's unprovoked war of aggression in Ukraine.

Discussions on U.S. and UK industrial base resilience included a review of the National Defense Industrial Strategy (NDIS) Implementation Plan, the EU-led European Defense Industrial Program, and defense innovation and rapid acquisition programs- to include Replicator.

Deputy Secretary Hicks emphasized that collective security is made stronger when we promote the free flow of ideas, materiel, and systems across the Atlantic. She also noted that engaging international partners and Allies is critical to enabling interoperability and promoting international and government-to-government industrial cooperation.

The Deputy Secretary and Permanent Secretary also discussed the Global Combat Air Programme and reducing barriers to collaboration- to include reducing barriers to information sharing necessary to the success of the AUKUS trilateral partnership.

Deputy Secretary Hicks noted that initiatives like AUKUS demonstrate an ability to effectively collaborate, address shared objectives, and preserve rules-based international norms.

She also highlighted that combined efforts toward reducing barriers to information sharing will ultimately drive increased interoperability and help to operationalize integrated deterrence.

Deputy Secretary Hicks thanked Permanent Secretary Williams for his cooperation and effort over the last four years, which has helped to deepen the enduring special defense relationship between the U.S. and the UK.

The twice-yearly U.S.-UK Defense Dialogue was established to focus high-level attention on strategic and acquisition issues, as well as technical innovation. The last U.S.-UK defense dialogue was held at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., on June 5, 2024.