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Fox rejected one of the central planks of the government's green paper last week, that the UK will in future need to co-operate more closely with allies such as France to provide the full range of military capabilities.
In a speech to the Royal United Services Institute in London, he said that an incoming Conservative government would ensure that Britain remained a "first division" military power.
"We cannot accept the assumption in the green paper that Britain will always operate as part of an alliance," he said.
"We have unique national interests and have to maintain the capability to act unilaterally if required."
The green paper set out the framework for a full strategic defence review, which all parties are committed to holding following the general election.
Pointing to what he said was the "most adverse financial backdrop for decades", Fox said that while the military could not be "immune from the economic realities", the review would be an opportunity for "long overdue radical thinking and reform".
"It will be carried out ruthlessly and without sentiment. Tough decisions will be made and there will be winners and losers at the end of the process, but Britain will be safe and our interests secure," he said.
"We are at a tipping point in Britain. We need to decide if we want to stay in the first division or slide into the second division. I choose the former."
The Tory review would look "beyond defence in the traditional sense" and presented a "clean break from the legacy and mindset of the cold war".
"Make no mistake. We need a step change, not tinkering," he said.
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