The latest warning is just one in a series of concerns that have been raised in recent months about the current state of the UK military. One former general recently warned that the UK would run out of ammunition after just one day if it had to fight directly against Russia. Now, the MPs sitting on the country's Defense Select Committee have released a report that illustrates the dire situation facing their military.
According to the report, the UK is dealing with major supply side problems that make it challenging to obtain fresh ammunition. In fact, they predict that it could take more than a decade to replenish their arsenal after sending billions of dollars in military equipment to help Ukraine.
The report said: “It is clear that the UK and its NATO Allies have allowed ammunition stockpiles to dwindle to dangerously low levels.” The report added that although Russia is also seeing its stockpiles begin to decline, other adversaries are managing to increase their own stockpiles, which puts those who are supplying Ukraine at risk.
“This inability to replenish UK stockpiles therefore puts at risk not just our ability to resupply Ukraine but also to counter any threat to our own security,” it added.
Two weeks ago, UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace warned that “war is coming” to the UK and that the country needs to be prepared. He has long been voicing concerns about the state of the British military.
In a recent interview, he warned: “Conflict is coming by the end of this decade… whether it is a cold war or hot, war is coming.”
Wallace is one of many who have been pushing for an increase in defense spending. The Commons Defense Committee is urging the Ministry of Defense to come up with an action plan to shorten the amount of time it will take to restore their munition stockpiles and stave off the threat to national security.
Some defense industry sources told Sky News that the Russian invasion of Ukraine has demonstrated that previous assumptions about what would be needed in order to fight a war fall way too short.
However, it is not just supply problems that the UK military is facing. Previous reports also pointed to the challenges the Royal Air Force would face in fielding planes in a conflict against major powers like China and Russia.
Russian invasion should be considered a wake-up call
Committee chairman Tobias Ellwood said that he believes the Russian invasion “should be a wake-up call for the West.”
Other nations are also finding themselves in a position where they might not be able to defend themselves should they be attacked directly. For example, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius recently admitted his country’s military would be unable to repel an attack if the country were invaded right now by a foreign power.
"We have no armed forces that are capable of defence, i.e. capable of defending against an offensive brutally conducted war of aggression,” he stated.
Meanwhile, EU defense ministers are scheduled to meet today to discuss a plan to send a billion euros worth of ammunition to Ukraine amid growing pressure to boost its supplies as fighting rages on around the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut. Intense fighting there has been some of the deadliest and most drawn-out of the invasion so far.
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