Starmer’s position on the above will be closely scrutinised to see if the former barrister intends to stray from the well-worn pro-Ukraine and pro-Atlanticist path on security trod by the numerous Conservative prime ministers that preceded him.

Few doubt that Starmer will attend because all polls point to a massive victory for his Labour party in the British general election on July 4. Barring a surprise so gigantic that it would vaporise the polling industry, Labour looks set to be swept into power by a landslide victory, and Starmer will move into Nr 10 once Rishi Sunak has moved out.

The prospect of a Labour politician in charge of Britain’s defense and foreign policy has got some Conservative politicians hot under the collar. They have been quick to point out in the press that Starmer once served under the Labour party’s previous leader, Jeremy Corbyn, who, they have claimed, was anti-US and anti-NATO while also being pro-nuclear disarmament.

Last month, Sunak even went as far as to suggest that a Labour victory could “embolden Putin” because the party has failed to match the Conservative's commitment to raise defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030.

But Starmer has refuted this.

A Labour government, he has said, will be committed to Britain’s nuclear deterrent, including the construction of four submarines capable of carrying nuclear weapons. The resolve to keep on possessing nuclear weapons and the capability to deploy them will probably be welcomed by NATO planners fearful that a second Trump presidency could weaken the alliance despite the threat posed by Russia.

Starmer has also said that his government would make the U.K.’s Armed Forces “fit to fight” and that the U.K. must “never shy away from doing our duty at home and abroad”. He has also pledged to raise British defense spending to 2.5% of GDP, although this was followed by the caveat of “as soon as resources allow”; a factor that was seized upon by Sunak.

This apparent commitment to nuclear weapons and increasing the size and potency of the British military could help bolster European and NATO security at a time of huge geo-political instability.

A commitment to spend on arms should also help underpin British support for Ukraine and a broader resolve to contain what many regard as Putin’s expansionist plans. In May, John Healey, the shadow defense minister, said that British support for Ukraine under Labour was “ironclad”, a statement that made clear that a change of government will not weaken support for Kyiv.

So, barring a huge surprise, the government in Britain will change as will the occupant of Number 10. But when it comes to British defense policy, and, as a consequence, support for Ukraine “no change” appears to be on the cards.