The UK and its Western allies are moving too slowly when it comes to adopting new military technologies. A member of the senior team for the British government’s Strategic Defense Review has warned, Politico reports, News.bg reports.
The independent assessment, aimed at identifying the main threats facing the United Kingdom, places strong emphasis on the need for the country to be “combat-ready“ through investment in advanced technology, munitions and long-range weapons.
While Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government has accepted all of the review’s recommendations, it has refused to set a specific deadline for achieving the 3% of GDP target for military spending – a threshold that experts say is the minimum needed to implement the strategy.
Grace Cassie, an investor in security start-ups and former adviser to Tony Blair, is one of six external experts selected to take part in the review. She said the war in Ukraine had demonstrated how quickly military technology, particularly drones, sensors and electronic warfare systems, was changing the battlefield.
“There is a constant battle for technological superiority, which is often very short-lived,” Cassie said. “Innovation cycles are extremely short.“
She gave the example of drones, where control frequencies can be jammed in a matter of days, making the technology unstable and requiring continuous adaptation.
“The review clearly shows that we still have a long way to go before we are fully prepared for this type of conflict,“ she warned.
Cassi was particularly critical of cumbersome public procurement, risk aversion and over-reliance on a few large defense suppliers. The report says new technologies need to be introduced within three months - a time frame that reflects the dynamics of modern warfare.
“If tomorrow we increase military spending to 5% of GDP but keep our old habits, we will not be ready for the future“, said Cassie.
She stressed that the problem does not only affect Britain, but the whole of NATO. “All allies need to change to spend more effectively.“
Meanwhile, NATO's new Secretary General Mark Rutte has called on member states to increase defense spending, warning that Russia could be ready for military aggression against NATO within five years.
However, Cassie noted that attacks in the so-called “gray zone“ - including cyberattacks and threats to critical infrastructure - could happen even sooner.
“We are already engaged in a daily struggle below the threshold of conventional war. This requires us to invest wisely and strategically in the broader scope of our defenses,“ she concluded.