British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said he would lift defence spending to 2.5 percent of the country’s annual GDP by 2030, saying the British arms industry must be on a “war footing” when the world is at its most dangerous since the Cold War.
Standing alongside NATO leader Jens Stoltenberg, Sunak said the United Kingdom would spend an additional 75 billion pounds ($93bn) over six years to increase the production of munitions and drones, making the UK the second-largest defence spender in NATO.
He said one of the central lessons of war in Ukraine was that countries needed deeper stockpiles of munitions, and the ability to replenish them more quickly. His remarks came on the heels of a new pledge to send arms worth 500 million pounds ($622m) to Ukraine, including missiles, armoured vehicles and ammunition.
Sunak has been under pressure from his governing Conservative Party to boost defence spending more quickly after previously saying he could do so only “as soon as economic conditions allow”.
Credit: aljazeera.com
