RTTue, 23 Jul 2024 14:16 UTC
© Stefan Rousseau - Pool/Getty ImagesBritish Defence Secretary John Healey (L) and Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) in Washington DC on July 11, 2024.
John Healey has said the army faces "very serious challenges," according to national media
The British Army, Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force are all struggling with
"hollowed out forces, procurement waste, [and] low morale," British Defense Secretary John Healey has warned.In a grim assessment of the state of the UK military, Healey told the British Army's annual Land Warfare Conference in London on Monday that the nation's armed forces face "very serious challenges," according to Sky News.
"We now also see that these problems are much worse than we thought," added the defense secretary, who has been in office for just over two weeks as part of the new Labour government.Healey also said he wants to establish "a new era for UK defense" in the face of "rapidly increasing global threats."
The new British government launched a thorough defense review earlier this month after Labour's general election victory. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has insisted that Britain should be better prepared for "a more dangerous and volatile world."
The government has set out a "roadmap" to spending 2.5% of national income on defense. Britain is a member of NATO, which requires that member states spend at least 2% of GDP on their militaries.
The conference in London was also attended by the Ukrainian ambassador to the UK, General Valery Zaluzhny, who delivered a speech claiming that a Third World War may be approaching as a result of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.Zaluzhny was removed from his post as commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian armed forces by Vladimir Zelensky in February following the failed 2023 counteroffensive.
London has been a vocal supporter of Kiev since the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022.
The British government has delivered almost £12.5 billion ($16.1 billion) in aid to Kiev as of the beginning of July.Earlier this month, Starmer pledged to provide £3 billion ($3.87 billion) a year in military support to Ukraine until 2030/31 and "for as long as needed."
Zelensky visited London last week to meet with Starmer and attend a cabinet meeting.
The British leader told Zelensky that London would speed up the delivery of aid to Kiev, claiming that "Ukraine is, and always will be, at the heart of this government's agenda."London and Kiev also signed a framework agreement which included a
£2 billion ($2.6 billion) loan to finance Ukraine's defense needs.The Russian diplomatic mission in London warned that further support for Kiev would only worsen the conflict and the situation on the ground in Ukraine.
Comment: A new Defense Secretary may have an interest in painting a dire picture when funds have to be requested and funnelled from tax payers into military expenses. He may use the opportunity to insinuate that the old government from the other party did not do the job as well as he intends to do it.
The new UK government that took office on July 5. does not change the foreign policy direction, it keeps doing the same to make sure tensions are high and stay that way. Already in 2021 there was:
As an ex-British Army officer, I can see the UK's new mission to bring 'freedom' to Eastern Europe will end in disaster and in 2022:
Leaked documents reveal British spies constructing secret terror army in Ukraine.
The developments in Ukraine this year, are not the same as in 2022 when far from the front a little sabotage could help consumers go green if not blue, and turn down the room temperature as in this multinational operation:
British navy involved in Nord Stream 2 'terrorist attack' - Russia
UK insurers refuse to pay out over Nord Stream because blasts were 'government-backed'
Independent investigator: Elements of UK government behind Nord Stream attacksThe fact-checkers will look into the
statistics and find that since 2017 between zero and two British soldiers have died per year, that is pretty risk free, compared to
other professions in the UK. Earlier in July there was
Russian strike takes out British SAS sabotage group in Ukraine, claims retired Russian naval officer Sivkov
What was that about? The Government might if asked say that this is not true (believe it or not), or that they have no information, or answer with a counter question. Fortunately the MSM will hesitate to raise impertinent subjects, lest the media get labelled as untrustworthy and looses the patronage of sponsors, advertisers and confidential sources within the administration.
If British nationals in Ukraine are reported to cross harm's way, so are others:
Iskander strike targets Western mercenaries and instructors in Ukraine though not always, as when
NATO's foreign mercenaries carried out the false-flag Bucha massacre. And if British tax payers have to pay more, others do too:
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute: Defense spending in Europe back to Cold War levels
Comment: A new Defense Secretary may have an interest in painting a dire picture when funds have to be requested and funnelled from tax payers into military expenses. He may use the opportunity to insinuate that the old government from the other party did not do the job as well as he intends to do it.
The new UK government that took office on July 5. does not change the foreign policy direction, it keeps doing the same to make sure tensions are high and stay that way. Already in 2021 there was: As an ex-British Army officer, I can see the UK's new mission to bring 'freedom' to Eastern Europe will end in disaster and in 2022: Leaked documents reveal British spies constructing secret terror army in Ukraine.
The developments in Ukraine this year, are not the same as in 2022 when far from the front a little sabotage could help consumers go green if not blue, and turn down the room temperature as in this multinational operation:
British navy involved in Nord Stream 2 'terrorist attack' - Russia
UK insurers refuse to pay out over Nord Stream because blasts were 'government-backed'
Independent investigator: Elements of UK government behind Nord Stream attacks
The fact-checkers will look into the statistics and find that since 2017 between zero and two British soldiers have died per year, that is pretty risk free, compared to other professions in the UK. Earlier in July there was Russian strike takes out British SAS sabotage group in Ukraine, claims retired Russian naval officer Sivkov
What was that about? The Government might if asked say that this is not true (believe it or not), or that they have no information, or answer with a counter question. Fortunately the MSM will hesitate to raise impertinent subjects, lest the media get labelled as untrustworthy and looses the patronage of sponsors, advertisers and confidential sources within the administration.
If British nationals in Ukraine are reported to cross harm's way, so are others: Iskander strike targets Western mercenaries and instructors in Ukraine though not always, as when NATO's foreign mercenaries carried out the false-flag Bucha massacre. And if British tax payers have to pay more, others do too:
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute: Defense spending in Europe back to Cold War levels