Britain is getting a defense boost aimed at sending a message to Moscow, and to Trump
LONDON (AP) — The United Kingdom will build new nuclear-powered attack submarines and create an army ready to fight a war in Europe as part of a boost to military spending designed to send a message to Moscow — and Washington.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain 'cannot ignore the threat that Russia poses' as he pledged to undertake the most sweeping changes to Britain's defenses since the end of the Cold War more than three decades ago.
'We have to recognize the world has changed,' Starmer told the BBC. 'With greater instability than there has been for many, many years, and greater threats.'
What's happening on Monday?
The government is to respond to a strategic defense review commissioned by Starmer and led by George Robertson, a former U.K. defense secretary and NATO secretary general. It's the first such review since 2021, and lands in a world transformed by Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and by the re-election of President Donald Trump last year.
The government says it will accept all 62 recommendations made in the review, aiming to help the U.K. confront growing threats on land, air sea and in cyberspace.
Defense Secretary John Healey said the changes would send 'a message to Moscow, and transform the country's military following decades of retrenchment, though he said he does not expect the number of soldiers — currently at a historic low — to rise until the early 2030s.
Healey said plans for defense spending to hit 2.5% of national income by 2027 a year are 'on track' and that there's 'no doubt' it will hit 3% before 2034.
Starmer said the 3% goal is an 'ambition,' rather than a firm promise, and it's unclear where the cash-strapped Treasury will find the money. The government has already, contentiously, cut international aid spending to reach the 2.5% target.
Starmer said he wouldn't make a firm pledge until he knew 'precisely where the money is coming from.'
Deterring Russia
Even 3% falls short of what some leaders in NATO think is needed to deter Russia from future attacks on its neighbors. NATO chief Mark Rutte says leaders of the 32 member countries will debate a commitment to spend at least 3.5% of GDP on defense when they meet in the Netherlads this month.
Monday's announcements include building 'up to 12' nuclear-powered, conventionally armed submarines under the AUKUS partnership with Australia and the United States. The government also says it will invest 15 billion in Britain's nuclear arsenal, which consists of missiles carried on a handful of submarines. Details of those plans are likely to be scarce.
The government will also increase conventional Britain's weapons stockpiles with up to 7,000 U.K.-built long-range weapons.
Starmer said rearming would create a 'defense dividend' of well-paid jobs — a contrast to the post-Cold War 'peace dividend' that saw Western nations channel money away from defense into other areas.
Like other NATO members, the U.K. has been reassessing its defense spending since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Healey said Russia is 'attacking the U.K. daily,' with 90,000 cyberattacks from state-linked sources directed at the U.K.'s defense over the last two years. A cyber command to counter such threats is expected to be set up as part of the review.
'This is a message to Moscow,' Healey told the BBC.
Bolstering Europe's defenses
It's also a message to Trump that Europe is heeding his demand for NATO members to spend more on their own defense.
European countries, led by the U.K. and France, have scrambled to coordinate their defense posture as Trump transforms American foreign policy, seemingly sidelining Europe as he looks to end the war in Ukraine. Trump has long questioned the value of NATO and complained that the U.S. provides security to European countries that don't pull their weight.
Robert Jenrick, justice spokesman for the main opposition Conservative Party, called on the government to be more ambitious and raise spending to 3% of national income by 2029.
'We think that 2034 is a long time to wait, given the gravity of the situation,' he told Sky News.
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Director and writer Danny Boyle teased the Oscar winner will appear to set up a third movie, if the first two do well. Cillian Murphy is set to make his eventual return to the world of 28 Days Later within the upcoming trilogy that 28 Years Later will kick off this summer, but there are a few catches. Director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) revealed vague details about the Oscar-winning Oppenheimer actor's involvement to IGN. The upcoming trilogy expands on the world Boyle and Alex Garland (Civil War) started with 28 Days Later and its star Cillian Murphy, with a new set of interconnected stories. However, Murphy will not appear in the first film as it introduces a new central character: Spike, a 12-year-old boy portrayed by Alfie Williams whose family (led by Jodie Comer and Aaron Taylor-Johnson) finds itself in the thick of the post-apocalyptic zombie outbreak. 'Although each story completes itself, there's a handover section to the next film as well. So it's very ambitious. We haven't got the money for the third one yet. It will depend how the first one does, I guess,' Boyle shared and explained that Murphy's return is contingent on how the first two movies do. 'But hopefully if we do ok, they'll give us the go-ahead for the money and for the third one. Everybody's standing by for that, really. Including Cillian,' the director confirmed regarding Murphy's participation. Currently it's planned that he will make an appearance at the end of the Nia DaCosta (Candyman)-directed follow-up 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, which picks up on the immediate continuation of events from Boyle's upcoming reboot sequel and is slated to open in theaters next January. 'He is in the second one,' Boyle revealed, 'I shouldn't give away too much. I'll get killed.' But we can guess that his appearance will only tease the potential of the third film, which Sony has yet to confirm. Boyle continued, 'You know that thing about sequels, you want to push it on and take huge risks.' 'I have to say fair play to [studio Sony Pictures]. They did allow us to take great liberties with [28 Years Later]. They could have said, 'Oh no, it needs to be more sequel-y. You need to rely on some of the ideas that are in the original. And what do you mean Cillian's not going to appear in the first one? I thought you said Cillian was going to be in it.' We said, 'Yeah, Cillian is going to be in it, but not quite the first one.' So fair play to them. They've put up with a lot.' 28 Years Later opens June 20.
