Defence cuts diluting UK influence, warns former Navy chief
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
London, Sep 12, IRNA -- The British government should stop pretending that the country can remain a big international player without proper investment in defence, says former Navy chief and security minister Lord West.
West, who was a Labour minister, blamed successive governments for the UK's military decline, and said that both main parties have failed to match words with deeds when it comes to military spending.
Governments have been in denial about the waning influence of the UK on the world stage and pretend Britain is a big military player but see 'no votes' in defence investment, he said in an article for a book entitled What Next for Labour?.
West, who was a critic of last year's national security strategy, and defence review, said the country's defence was 'not safe” in the hands of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition.
'As the reductions bite we will become a different nation. Can we really expect to remain a permanent member of the UN security council? How can we look after our dependencies? Perhaps we should ask France to take that responsibility?” he said.
The former head of the Navy also said that the flawed decision to stay in Afghanistan after the invasion was compounded by the 'equally flawed decision to move into the Helmand region with its consequent toll on servicemen's lives'.
'Since we want something for which we are not prepared to pay the price, we should be prepared to make the strategic and policy choices which follow from this refusal,” he added.
“We are guilty of not giving the serious intellectual effort necessary to our position and strategic goals in the world, nor analysing the threats, risks and vulnerabilities that face us.'
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Islamic Republic News Agency/IRNA NewsCode: 30561324
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