‘UK is in peril now’ as Starmer warned country vulnerable to missile attacks | Politics | News

NATO is set to urge Sir Keir Starmer to increase spending on air and missile defence over its belief that the UK is vulnerable to ballistic missile attack.

Early this year, the alliance will issue member states with updated force requirements, highlighting the areas each country needs to improve to strengthen the groups collective defence.

The Sunday Times reports that defence sources state that member countries are consistently expressing concern over Britain’s lack of contribution to the defensive shields that keep Europe safe.

A draft of the NATO blueprint, called the Capability Target 2025, is said to raise the need for the UK to invest in air defence systems, known as surfaced-based air defence (SBAD), to defend critical national infrastructure, such as nuclear power stations or military bases.

It comes as senior defence sources warn that the UK “is in peril now” and that within 15 years, could be targeted by a ballistic missile from anywhere in the world.

The British armed forces are in the midst of a strategic review which will ascertain the threats, capabilities and priorities for the years ahead.

The review is being led by Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, a former Labour defence secretary and former Nato secretary-general, and General Sir Richard Barrons, who led the UK’s Joint Forces Command and is widely expected to state the need for increased spending to develop capabilities and bolster equipment.

The panel, commissioned within weeks of Labour’s election victory in July is understood to be deeply concerned by the holes in Britain’s missile defences.

The war in Ukraine has demonstrated how effective modern missiles can be in targeting critical national infrastructure and the civilian population.

In December, the Prime Minister visited troops based at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, the location of forces used to aid Israel as it shot down dozens of drones launched by Iran earlier this year in the first of two barrages sent by the clerics.

During the second barrage, which came as Defence Secretary John Healey was en-route to the Cypriot base to oversee preparations for a potential evacuation of UK citizens from Lebanon.

Whilst there, he is said to have seen first hand how British forces were limited to a reconnaissance and intelligence-sharing role due to their inability to have an effect on the more advanced weaponry launched by Tehran compared to the previous occasion.

There were credible, albeit unlikely, fears that the base itself could be targeted, given its close proximity to Iran and its Middle East proxies.

In the post-war period, Britain’s geographic location has provided safety from missile attacks, with the only missiles in range of the UK mainland being nuclear and thus less likely to be used.

In Ukraine, Russia has recently used the Oreshnik missile, capable of travelling at Mach-10 and able to hit targets 3,410 miles away, putting most of Europe within range.

It is feared that technological advances and the ever-changing nature of geo-politics could see adversaries within range of the UK armed with ballistic missiles in the next 15 years.

A senior military source said Britain could be attacked from any direction if a ballistic missile were fired from a ship, submarine or aircraft. “In 15 years’ time, a ballistic missile will be able to hit Britain from anywhere in the world,” they said. “But it’s a very expensive problem to fix.”

Labour have committed to increasing defence spending to 2.5% of GDP “when the economic conditions allow” without elaborating further on a more definitive timeframe.