London: Tuesday will see the release of plans by Britain to increase the combat readiness of its armed forces, including spending $3.3 billion ($2.5 billion) to replenish ammunition and stockpiles that have been depleted as a result of the conflict in Ukraine.
As Britain has provided Ukraine with weapons to use against Russia, the war has revealed flaws in the British military, such as the depleting stockpiles of some munitions and a lack of industrial capacity needed to ramp up production quickly.
In order to counter the more immediate threat posed by Russia and the longer-term challenge posed by China, the government claimed that the most recent version of its Defense Command Paper would outline the strategy to reshape the size and strength of the armed forces.
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Before the full report was released, the government issued a statement outlining plans for a new Global Response Force to enable forces to "get there first" and an improved "surge capacity" force made up of former soldiers.
The strategy, according to Ben Wallace, the defense minister, will ensure that Britain stays at the forefront of military capability and a leading power in NATO. Wallace announced over the weekend that he will step down soon.
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In order to combat the threats we face, he said, "We must modernize and adapt, learning from President Putin's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine."
In order to increase its defense spending from about 2 percent of GDP to about 2.25 percent this year and next, Britain announced earlier this year that it would spend an additional 5 billion pounds.
The government declared that it would give investments in science and technology—including the use of robotics and laser weapons—priority as part of the new defense strategy.
Britain has been Ukraine's second-largest military aid donor after the United States, providing 2.3 billion pounds of assistance in 2017.
Although this is significantly less than what the US has offered, Britain has previously been the first nation to give Ukraine more advanced weapons.
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Prior to the invasion, Britain delivered to Ukraine the first shoulder-launched anti-air and anti-tank weapons, and in February it declared it would be the first nation to start instructing Ukrainian pilots on NATO fighter jets.