UK plans $2bn weapons upgrade as Starmer calls for ‘war readiness'
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned the United Kingdom must be prepared to confront and defeat hostile states with modern military capabilities, as his government unveils a 1.5-billion-pound (about $2bn) plan to build at least six new weapons and explosives factories.
'We are being directly threatened by states with advanced military forces, so we must be ready to fight and win,' Starmer wrote in The Sun newspaper on Sunday. 'We will restore Britain's war-fighting readiness as the central purpose of our armed forces.'
The announcement came in advance of a Strategic Defence Review (SDR), which Starmer is set to publish on Monday. The review will assess threats facing the UK amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and pressure from United States President Donald Trump for NATO allies to bolster their defences.
European nations have rushed to strengthen their armed forces in recent months, following Trump's comments that Europe must shoulder more responsibility for its security.
Defence Secretary John Healey, speaking to the BBC network, said the planned investment signals a clear warning to Moscow and would also help revive the UK's sluggish economy.
'We are in a world that is changing now … and it is a world of growing threats,' Healey told the BBC on Sunday. 'It's growing Russian aggression. It's those daily cyberattacks, it's new nuclear risks, and it's increasing tension in other parts of the world as well.'
The UK's Ministry of Defence confirmed the funds would support the domestic production of up to 7,000 long-range missiles. With this package, its total munitions spending will reach approximately 6 billion pounds (nearly $8bn) during the current parliamentary term.
Meanwhile, The Sunday Times reported that the government is eyeing US-built jets capable of launching tactical nuclear weapons, although the UK's Defence Ministry has yet to comment.
The forthcoming SDR, ordered after the Labour Party's election win in July 2024, will outline emerging threats and the military capabilities required to address them. Starmer has pledged to raise defence spending to 2.5 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) by 2027, with an eventual aim of reaching 3 percent.
The arms initiative follows earlier government pledges to invest 1 billion pounds ($1.3bn) in artificial intelligence technology for battlefield decision-making and an additional 1.5 billion pounds (about $2bn) to improve housing conditions for armed forces personnel.
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