The Integrated Review Refresh 2023

Germany is still working on a national security strategy and the governing coalition has not been able to agree on the establishment of a National Security Council. In contrast, the British government last month delivered: The Integrated Review Refresh 2023 (IRR23) builds on the Integrated Review (IR) of two years prior and is a key geostrategic document. In around 60 pages, it sets out the goals of British foreign policy and outlines strategies for achieving them. The added value of the IR is that it does not get bogged down in details, but strives to integrate the priorities of the United Kingdom (UK) in different policy areas and for different regions of the world into an overall picture that is as coherent as possible. The overall picture, which can be gleaned from the current IRR23 is similar to that of the 2021 IR but exhibits some differences that are particularly significant for Germany and Europe. The latter suggest that the post-Brexit UK has now overcome the bombast and hubris of the Johnson years and found a healthier balance between strategic ambition and pragmatism.