Charles Clover

London

Defence Correspondent at Financial Times

Financial Times Defence Correspondent, writing from London now. Wrote Black Wind White Snow: The Rise of Russia's New Nationalism.

Articles

RAF head set to be named next chief of British armed forces

3 days ago | ft.com | Charles Clover

The head of the RAF, Sir Richard Knighton, is set to be named Chief of the Defence Staff within the coming days.
UK set to back Nato push for members to spend 3.5% of GDP on defence

4 days ago | ft.com | David Sheppard |Charles Clover |Henry Foy

The UK is expected to back Nato’s push for all members to spend at least 3.5 per cent of GDP on defence by 2035, despite Prime Minister...
Liverpool university’s China JV has links to sanctioned entities, report says

4 days ago | ft.com | Charles Clover |Demetri Sevastopulo

A Chinese university co-founded by the University of Liverpool has close links with entities that are subject to US and EU sanctions,...
Submarines, drones and AI: Britain’s military future mapped out in defence review

5 days ago | ft.com | Charles Clover |Sylvia Pfeifer |David Sheppard

The UK strategic defence review has been billed as a 10-year stock take of the country’s military and strategic priorities and will be...
UK must spend £68bn to modernise military, defence review suggests

5 days ago | ft.com | Charles Clover |David Sheppard |Sylvia Pfeifer |Delphine Strauss

The UK will need to spend about £68bn to prepare its armed forces for modern warfare, a long-awaited strategic defence review suggests,...
UK to build 12 attack submarines in move to war-ready footing

5 days ago | afr.com | Charles Clover |George Parker

Charles Clover and George ParkerJun 2, 2025 – 3.25pm or Subscribe to save articleSubscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe. Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? London | Britain will build roughly a dozen new attack submarines as it moves to a state of “war-fighting readiness”, Sir Keir Starmer will say later Monday, as he begins what he claims will be a major rearmament programme.
Keir Starmer refuses to commit to precise date for 3% defence spending target

6 days ago | ft.com | David Sheppard |Charles Clover |George Parker

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has refused to commit to a date to raise UK defence spending to 3 per cent of GDP, even as the government...
Military briefing: How Iran is preparing for Israeli or US strikes

6 days ago | ft.com | Charles Clover

Iran has been seeking to bolster its air defences as the military prepares for the possibility of an Israeli or US strike against...
UK’s high-tech warfare operations to be unified in defence shake-up

1 week ago | ft.com | Charles Clover

The UK military will unify cyber and electronic operations under a single command as part of a sweeping reorganisation of high-tech...
Britain has wronged the Chagossians again

2 weeks ago | spectator.com.au | Charles Clover

I could not resist rushing to the High Court to witness the eleventh-hour challenge to the deal to give away the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius, brought by two valiant Chagossian women. Outside, their supporters chanted ‘Chagossians British’ and waved their passports.