Faced with Russian threats, the UK will build new attack submarines

The United Kingdom will build up to 12 nuclear attack submarines and six munitions factories, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Monday, as part of his commitment to rearm the country against the "threat" posed notably by Russia.

During a visit to Glasgow, Scotland, the Labor leader outlined his strategy to make the United Kingdom a nation "combat-ready" and "equipped for the decades to come."

"The threat we face today is more serious, more immediate, and more unpredictable than ever since the Cold War," he stated.

"We are facing a war in Europe, new nuclear risks, daily cyberattacks, growing Russian aggression in our waters, which also threatens our airspace," he added.

Among the key measures announced is the construction of up to 12 nuclear-powered submarines equipped with conventional weapons, within the framework of the Aukus military alliance, with the United States and Australia.

These will replace the UK’s current fleet by the end of the 2030s. For now, this fleet consists of seven submarines of this type.

Keir Starmer also confirmed that the United Kingdom would spend 15 billion pounds ($17.7 billion) on its nuclear warhead program.

This announcement is part of "strengthening our nuclear deterrent as the ultimate guarantor of our security and safety," he added.

Concurrently, he announced the creation of six new munitions factories, expected to create around 1,000 jobs. This will bring the budget allocated to munitions to 6 billion pounds during this legislature.

The British Prime Minister had announced at the end of February an unprecedented increase since the end of the Cold War in national defense spending to 2.5% of GDP in 2027 from 2.3% currently.

New technologies

He mentioned the government's ambition to spend 3% of national GDP on defense during the next legislature, which is beyond 2029, but without committing to a specific date.

"When we are directly threatened by states with advanced military forces, the most effective way to deter them is to be ready, and frankly, to show them that we are ready to establish peace by force," he further stated.

On Sunday, in an op-ed in the tabloid The Sun, he named Iran and North Korea, in addition to Russia, as countries posing a threat.

He left out China, while London has stepped up efforts in recent months to ease relations with Beijing, strained under previous Conservative governments.

Detailing this strategy in Parliament, Defense Minister John Healey pledged to make the British army "ten times more lethal" by combining drone and AI technology with "the heavy metal of tanks and artillery."

He also highlighted that the world has entered "a new era," with "adversaries working more in alliance with each other, while technology changes" the very nature of conflicts.

London intends to evolve its armed forces by further integrating advancements such as drones or artificial intelligence, and notably announced last week the creation of a command dedicated to cyber capabilities, both defensive and offensive.

The security of Europe and the role of the United Kingdom in NATO are at the heart of this defense strategy revision, Starmer recalled, at a time when the United States is urging its allies to invest more in their defense. "Our defense policy will always be NATO first," he emphasized on Monday in Glasgow.