‘Axis of upheaval’ adds urgency to review of UK defence spending

Deepening military and trade links between Russia, China, Iran and North Korea are making western powers uneasy

Gen Roly Walker, the head of the British army, has described it as the axis of upheaval". George Robertson, the new head of the UK's defence review, has called the countries the deadly quartet". Either way, less than a month into a Labour government, an emerging geopolitical alignment is being highlighted as a threat.

The concerns centre on the growing military and trade links between Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. Though the four are some way from a cold war-style bloc acting in concert, they have enhanced bilateral ties since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in a manner that has fuelled anxiety among defence officials and policymakers.