DEFENCE BUDGETS
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Keir Starmer, Churchillian Rhetoric, Peacetime Budgets, & the Slow Death of Britain’s Defence Capabilities
Great powers can decline with dignity. Formerly great powers, by contrast, often compensate for diminished means with inflated rhetoric. Britain has chosen the latter course. It still speaks in the accents of a serious military state. Ministers talk of deterrence,…
Keir Starmer’s Defence Bonanza Is Heavy on Headlines, Light on Credibility
Britain’s political class has finally rediscovered defence. After three decades spent harvesting the post-Cold War peace dividend, ministers now speak the language of deterrence with almost evangelical conviction. Russia is rearming. China is expanding. NATO is under pressure. Europe must…
NATO’s Arctic pledge meets the hard limits of icebreakers, sensors and naval capacity
NATO’s northern flank is moving from strategic rhetoric to a procurement problem, as allies confront the cost of defending the Arctic with too few ice-capable ships, limited surveillance and a military geography heavily shaped by Russia’s presence on the Kola…
Prague’s Defence Retreat Risks Confirming Washington’s Worst Suspicions
The Czech Republic’s decision to miss NATO’s defence spending target for yet another year could hardly come at a worse moment for the Atlantic alliance. At a time when Russia’s war against Ukraine continues to reshape Europe’s security landscape and…
UK Drone Package Shows Frozen Russian Assets Moving Into Ukraine’s War Economy
Britain’s plan to supply Ukraine with 150,000 drones by the end of 2026 shows how proceeds from immobilised Russian sovereign assets are being converted into battlefield hardware, linking sanctions policy directly to defence procurement. Britain’s pledge to provide Ukraine with…
US “NATO 3.0” Push Turns Europe’s Defence Burden Into a Force-Planning Test
Washington’s call for a tougher “NATO 3.0” is not only a spending demand. It forces European allies to plan for crises in which US aircraft, carriers, tankers and command assets may no longer be available by default. The United States’…
UK Defence Spending Row Deepens as Drone and Procurement Questions Test NATO Credibility
Britain’s defence spending row has moved beyond headline budget numbers, after Al Carns’ criticism of MoD waste exposed a deeper fight over drones, procurement priorities and NATO credibility. The UK’s defence spending row has deepened into a wider argument over…
Ukraine’s Reported $20bn Arms Request Puts Drone War and Air Defence at Centre of Allied Support Debate
Ukraine’s reported plan to seek a further $20bn in military support from its partners places a clear question before Kyiv’s allies: whether they can turn political support into predictable weapons production at the pace required by the war. The figure…
Britain’s Defence Reckoning: Healey’s Resignation Exposes the Gap Between Promise and Policy
John Healey’s resignation as Defence Secretary represents more than another ministerial casualty in an increasingly fragile administration. It is, instead, an indictment of a government that has repeatedly spoken of the gravity of the international security environment while failing to…