The UK may try to flex military muscles, but has it got what it takes?

Aukus, a tripartite military pact between the US, Australia and the UK also emerged last year, initially to supply nuclear-powered submarine technology to Canberra. That too involved conflict with France, which had been supplying diesel-powered submarines to Australia, only for Paris to discover its partner had been secretly negotiating an alternative.

Aukus was further extended this week. The three countries are also to work on developing hypersonic missiles, which Russia and China already possess. In theory they can be nuclear armed, but Aukus members insist any of the high-speed, manoeuvrable warheads they use will be conventional.

Aid spending was cut by £4bn a year in 2020 and will remain below the 0.7% statutory target until 2024-2025, while defence spending was boosted by a similar amount, £16.5bn, over four years.

The question is whether UK has the resources to match the ambition. It is also nominally committed to the Indo-Pacific tilt outlined in its integrated defence and foreign policy review last March.