In a recent parliamentary session, former armed forces minister John Spellar said the British army would deplete its munitions in only ten days during a full-fledged war.
“The minister rightly speaks about the ability to sustain fighting, he knows that an exercise conducted with the Americans showed that the British Army would run out of munitions within ten days,” said Spellar.
Although current armed forces minister James Heappey insisted that Britain’s “armed forces remain fearsome,” he admitted that the “armed forces do need reinvestment in their ability to sustain themselves at a war-fighting level.” Heappey continued: “[W]e’re now in a pre-war era and so it’s the responsibility of this Government and those who follow to reinvest in that necessary war-fighting capability.”
Spellar’s and Heappey’s comments come as the UK — along with numerous other nations, including the U.S. — has been supplying significant amounts of munitions to Ukraine to sustain its war with Russia. The British Army’s lack of preparedness for a full-scale war could become a serious problem for the country, as Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that continued NATO interference in Ukraine could spark a war.
