Aysu Bicer
02 June 2025•Update: 02 June 2025
LONDON
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday warned that Britain must prepare for the possibility of conflict in order to deter it, as he unveiled his government’s defense spending review and outlined plans for a new generation of attack submarines.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today program, Starmer said the world had entered “a new era for defense and security” and that the UK must confront the growing instability and emerging threats, particularly from Russia.
“If you want to deter conflict, then the best way to do that is to prepare for conflict,” Starmer told the BBC’s Nick Robinson. “If the world has changed, then we need to be ready.”
The new defense spending plans include proposals for up to 12 new attack submarines, which the Ministry of Defense says will support 30,000 highly skilled jobs into the 2030s, alongside 30,000 apprenticeships and 14,000 graduate roles over the next decade.
Starmer laid out the core principles underpinning his defense strategy: “Warfighting readiness,” integrated armed forces, and a “NATO-first approach.”
Emphasizing the importance of the UK’s role in the alliance, he said: “NATO has been the single most effective alliance for keeping the peace for 80 years, and our job is not just to celebrate that as we do, but to ask ourselves the searching question as I ask myself on a daily basis, which is, how do we ensure that NATO preserves the peace for decades to come for this generation?”
He added: “The threat of Russia cannot be ignored,” and underlined that Britain must be “ready and prepared.”
When asked about comments made by the head of the British Army, who suggested the UK must be ready to fight a war within three years, Starmer said he hoped such a scenario would not materialize, but insisted preparation was essential.
“I very much hope not,” he said when asked whether British troops might be sent to fight under his premiership, “but the country needs to prepare in order to make sure this isn't the case.”
- Support for Ukraine
The prime minister reaffirmed the government’s support for Ukraine, calling its right to self-defense “absolute.”
“Every time he visits Ukraine, Starmer says he is ‘completely taken by the courage and resilience,’ that means it is still fighting,” he added. “It’s a reminder that because of this conflict, Ukraine has become ‘one of the strongest fighting forces in Europe'.”
On defense funding, Starmer confirmed the government is committed to increasing spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027/28 -- a level not seen since the last Labour government.
The prime minister reiterated Labour’s ambition to eventually reach 3% of GDP on defense but declined to commit to a timeline.
“Therefore, what you can take from this is – yes – that 3% but I am not, as the prime minister of a Labour government, going to make a commitment as to the precise date, until I couldn’t be sure precisely where the money is coming from, how we can make good on that commitment,” he said. “Because I don't believe in performative fantasy politics, and certainly not on defense and security.”
