British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivered a speech during a visit to the Bae Systems'govan facility in Glasgow, Scotland on Monday. Andy Buchanan/AFP via AP Closed subtitles
London - Britain will build new nuclear-powered attack submarines ready to fight in Europe and become a "prepared, armored country".
Starmer said Britain “can’t ignore the threat posed by Russia” because he promised the biggest change in defense against Britain since the collapse of the Soviet Union more than 30 years ago.
"The threat we face since the Cold War is more serious, more direct, and more unpredictable than ever since the Cold War," Starmer told workers and journalists at the Scottish Naval Shipyard.
Like other NATO members, Britain has been reassessing its defense spending since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The government announced a military plan in response to a strategic defense review commissioned by Starmer and was led by former British Defense Minister and NATO Secretary George Robertson. This is the first time such comment since 2021, it has been trapped in the war in the Russian war in Ukraine and the world of shocking and changing that last year when President Donald Trump re-election.
Months after Britain's last major defense review, then Prime Minister Boris Johnson said with confidence that the era of "fighting against large tanks on the European continent" was over. Three months later, Russian tanks entered Ukraine.
Starmer's center-left Labor government said it would be under review all 62 suggestions aimed at helping the UK face growing threats from land, air and cyberspace.
These measures include increasing the production of submarines and weapons and "learning the lessons of Ukraine", which quickly developed its drone technology to counter Moscow's troops and even hit targets deep inside Russia.
The government said the UK will invest in innovation and establish a cyber command to oppose the "daily" attack on the British defense.
Other measures include:
- Establish "up to 12" nuclear-powered, conventionally armed submarines, under Aukus partnerships with Australia and the United States
- Invest £15 billion (USD 20.3 billion) in the UK's nuclear arsenal, the weapon consists of missiles carried by a few submarines
- Increase the stock of conventional weapons in the UK and use six new ammunition factories and up to 7,000 long-range weapons built in the UK
- Develop new airborne and land drones, as well as a "hybrid navy" of automatic ships and crew
- £1 billion invested in UK defense
- As a family guard who protects critical national infrastructure, as part of the “all-round social approach”. It was quickly labeled as "Dad Army" after World War II sitcom
Starmer said the rise will create "defense dividends" for thousands of high-paying manufacturing jobs, in stark contrast to the "peace dividends" after the Cold War, which has allowed Western countries to transfer money from defense to other areas.
Defense Minister John Healey said the changes would "communicate to Moscow" after decades of layoffs and alter the country's military, although he said he did not want the number of soldiers (currently a two-century low of about 74,000) to increase to the early 2030s.
Healy said that by 2027, the plan for defense spending reached 2.5% of national income, which is “on the track” and it will undoubtedly reach 3% by 2034.
But Starmer said the 3% target is "ambition" rather than a firm commitment, and it is unclear where the cash-strapped Treasury will find the money. The government has controversially cut international aid spending to reach its 2.5% target.
"The defence review without funds is an empty wish list," said James Cartlidge, spokesman for the Conservative Party, the main opposition of the Ministry of Defense.
Even 3% do not have what some NATO leaders think are needed to stop Russia's future attacks on neighboring countries. NATO Chief Mark Rutte said that when meeting in the Netherlands this month, leaders of 32 member states will debate their spending at least 3.5% on defense.
It also sends a message to Trump that Europe is hearing his need for NATO members to spend more on their defense.
In European countries led by Britain and France, European countries scrambled to coordinate their defensive postures as Trump changed the U.S. foreign policy as Europe seemed to be confined to wars in Ukraine. Trump has long questioned NATO's value and complained that the United States has provided security for European countries that do not bear the weight.
Starmer said his administration will make "the greatest contribution of Britain to NATO since its inception".
"We will never fight alone," he said. "Our defense policy will always be NATO priority."
Matthew Savill, director of military science at the defense think tank Rusi, said the review put forward a "vision...what the armed forces will look like," but lacks key details.
"It's a statement of intention," he said. "It's not a roadmap."