Wes Streeting, USA News (London, United Kingdom): Defence Secretary Wes Streeting has warned that Britain must be ready for war in 1,000 days amid fears of a conflict with Russia. The cabinet minister said the UK’s adversaries could strike the country by 2030.
Earlier this week, Labour rolled out its ‘Be Ready’ preparedness campaign, urging Britons to begin stockpiling tinned food and bottled water. Now, writing in The Telegraph, Mr Streeting said his defining priority was to make sure the country was ready to fight and win a war.
“That is the only metric that counts,” he added. According to Mr Streeting, Britons should prepare for the worst. His resilience campaign advises citizens to have three days’ worth of supplies in case of an emergency.
“To prevent the worst, we have to prepare for it,” he stated. “In the first instance, that means expanding our capabilities so our adversaries think twice about attacking us. Should that fail, we must ensure that Britain is ready for war.”
However, Labour has already come under criticism for not setting out how it will reach John Healey’s target of spending three per cent of GDP on defence by 2030, a key point before Nato’s target of 3.5 per cent by 2035. The Defence Secretary claimed he was 100 per cent confident Andy Burnham and the Chancellor would be able to meet the 2035 Nato target. His remarks echo Mr Healey’s from earlier this year, who also insisted he was 100 per cent committed to his own target.
However, in a clear indicator officials may adjust pacing, the goal of expanding capabilities was described as getting lost amidst a fixation with percentages and dates. As defence funding looms over the Chancellor’s first Budget, Russian threats have become more prominent. Earlier this week, it was revealed that Russia had been pinpointing the exact location of Britain’s crucial undersea cables. And if slashed by Moscow on the first day of a Nato conflict, as General Sir Gwyn Jenkins believes, the UK has just one vessel capable of repairing them.
Labour has outlined plans to dole out harsh criminal punishments for those convicted of tampering with either undersea internet cables or energy pipelines. It will also grant telecommunications powers to remove or disable services during a national emergency.
While Russia has been conducting reconnaissance for a future conflict with the West, it has also been embroiled in its years-long invasion of Ukraine. Mr Streeting said the fighting between the two countries showed the importance of using every penny wisely.
He said: “When modern warfare requires us to be agile, adapt constantly and think differently, I will not shy away from diverting funding earmarked for one project to another one that makes more sense. That is the lesson from Ukraine, where tactics and technologies on the battlefield today are a world away from when the war began just a few years ago.”
He highlighted how a drone costing £500 can destroy a £3m tank and how innovative armoury can be deployed in weeks rather than years. Concluding his remarks on modern military adaptation, Mr Streeting noted that in a changing world, the most dangerous words in defence today remain “We have always done it this way.”
