About this Event
We are delighted to be welcoming a new speaker, Rear Admiral Tim Woods, the UK Defence Attache to Washington DC on October 3rd. His visit is a timely one as he comes to Honolulu at a time of increasing concerns over regional security in the Indo-Pacific and in Europe. RADM Woods is well versed on both, having just come from Kyiv, where he lead the UK’s defense engagements there.
Having been recently elected, the Labour Government is now considering its foreign and defence strategic options, and is undertaking a Strategic Defence Review (SDR), lead by George Robertson, a former Secretary General of NATO. Currently, the UK’s posture in the Indo-Pacific region is decided by strategic interests as laid out in the 2023 Integrated Review Refresh, which sees the world as more “volatile and contested”.
As the document makes clear, there are linkages between Russia and China – which drive the UK’s interests and defense posture in both regions. While RADM Woods can speak to the current posture, it will be interesting to see how UK’s posture evolves over the next year.
About the Speaker
Rear Admiral Tim Woods serves as Defence Attaché at the British Embassy Washington. He leads the UK’s extensive military engagement and partnerships across all branches of the United States military.
Rear Admiral Woods joins the team in Washington from Kyiv, Ukraine where he was the British Defence Attaché – at the frontline of the UK’s support to the Ukrainian military. In Kyiv he also served as Head of the British Defence Staff in Eastern Europe, commanding all Defence Attaches across Belarus, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Ukraine at a defining moment in European security.
He brings more than three decades’ experience both on land and at sea. Previous roles have included active duty in Afghanistan, deployments to the Far East, submarine patrols, secondments to NATO, the UK Ministry of Defence and the National Security Secretariat.
