British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced on Sunday that the United Kingdom will invest an additional £5 billion (5.6 billion euros) in defense over the next two years “in the context of the new threats from Russia and China”.
The intention is to use the extra budget to replenish and strengthen ammunition stocks, modernize nuclear weapons and finance the next phase of the AUKUS submarine project. The communication explicitly states that the additional budget should be used to respond to “emerging geopolitical threats, from Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine to China’s economic coercion and increased interstate competition”.
Sunak also expressed his ambition to increase the long-term defense budget to 2.5 percent of GDP.
Earlier this week, a committee of British MPs had warned that ammunition stocks were dangerously low. This, they said, jeopardized the security of the country. A message that Secretary of Defense Ben Wallace also delivered earlier.
“More unstable world”
“As the world becomes more unstable and competition between countries intensifies, the UK must hold its own,” said Sunak. “Investing in our military for the long term will make us ready to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow.”
Sunak will meet with US President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday to finalize an agreement to build nuclear-powered submarines as part of the AUKUS project.
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