Donald Trump is unlikely to be overly impressed with Sir ’s planned increase to defence spending when the pair meet at the White House, a former British Army officer has said.
Sir Keir’s face-to-face with the US President comes amid differing views on the conflict in and America’s push for a swift peace deal.
Mr Trump’s recent policies have surprised European allies, fostering closer ties with and criticising Ukrainian leadership, which has led to concerns about the future of European security and the UK’s role in supporting .
Against this backdrop, Sir Keir announced a significant increase in the UK’s defence budget, aiming to raise defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027, with an ambition to reach 3% in the next parliament. To fund this boost, the Government plans to cut the overseas aid budget from 0.5% to 0.3% of GDP.
Confusion has arisen due to discrepancies in the reported figures regarding the defence budget increase. During parliamentary sessions, Starmer mentioned a £13.4 billion increase over multiple years, while Defence Secretary John Healey referred to a £6 billion increase, leading to debates and accusations of number manipulation.
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Sir Keir Starmer speaking in the Commons earlier this week (Image: PA)
Lieutenant General Stuart Crawford, who served in the 4th Royal Tank Regiment, outlined his concerns in a blog uploead to the website.
Asked about Mr Trump’s likely reaction, he told Express.co.uk: “I suspect he’s going to say whichever way you count it it’s still not enough. Which it isn’t.
“It’s a step in the right direction but long overdue and we’re basically playing catch-up.”
Lt Col Crawford added: “The biggest funding requirement is personnel. All three services are under recruited and outflow is greater than inflow.
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US President Donald Trump (Image: Getty)
“As I have said multiple times before, all the shiny new equipment in the world is not worth a jot if we don’t have the people to crew it.”
The Prime Minister told a Downing Street press conference that he has been “arguing for some time” that Europe and the UK “needed to do more” for collective defence and security.
Sir announced a dramatic increase in defence spending from its current 2.3% to 2.5% by 2027 in response to “tyrant” and amid uncertainty over the US’s commitment to European security.
The increase in military funding increase is coming at the expense of the aid budget, which has triggered fierce criticisms from charities, but Sir Keir has defenced his choice, telling reporters that there is “no driver” of of poverty like conflict.
The change in approach from the UK comes ahead of the Prime Minister’s trip to Washington for talks with Mr Trump, who has repeatedly called for European nations to up their defence spending.