British Military Second Rate?

American and British Aircraft Carriers

We in the Living Church of God have long warned of the future decline of the military might of the Anglo-American nations.

The recent financial problems in the USA are expected to cause it to lose its military dominance. Back in September 2008 I reported on an LCG commentary about that (see LCG: What if We Can’t Afford the Military?).

But the United Kingdom has been experiencing this for decades, and even more in the past decade. Notice the following news item which includes comments from a grandson of Winston Churchill:

British military facing becoming ‘second division without major spending increase’

Britain must increase its defence spending by £15 billion a year or accept that it has become a “second division” military power, a major independent report has warned.

Telegraph – March 2, 2009

The shortfall in the armed forces’ budget has reached such a critical point that the Government may soon have little choice but to scrap key orders for equipment such as aircraft carriers, armoured vehicles or even the replacement for the Trident nuclear missile programme, it claims.

In a foreword to the report, Winston Churchill, the grandson of the wartime prime minister, bluntly states that if defence spending stays at its current level, Britain’s armed forces will “no longer play a significant role on the world stage”.

He said the country will lose its seat at the “top table” of international affairs, becoming “unable to defend her wider interests”.

He adds that a shortfall in defence funding over the past 10 years has left the armed forces “stretched to breaking point by a combination of over-commitment and under-resourcing”.

The report, published by the UK National Defence Association, comes after Britain’s most decorated serving soldier, Lance Corporal Johnson Beharry VC, berated the Government for its “disgraceful” failure to provide proper mental health treatment for servicemen returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Government has faced persistent accusations of failing to honour its “covenant” with the armed forces since the Afghanistan conflict began in 2001.

Senior officers have questioned ministers’ commitment to the forces after such controversies as the failure to replace lightly-armoured Snatch Land Rovers to patrol heavily mined areas, which has led to dozens of avoidable deaths and injuries.

Scandals over the state of forces housing, medical care and payments to severely injured veterans have also highlighted the lack of funding.

The UKNDA, an independent body which campaigns on behalf of the armed forces, states that the cost of “repairing” the armed forces, if Britain is to continue with its current foreign policies as well as funding major orders for equipment, will be £15 billion per year.

The represents a 40 per cent increase on the current £35 billion budget, but little more than the amount of money written off at a stroke to fund the recent 2.5 per cent VAT cut.

The report’s author, Tony Edwards, a former head of defence export services at the Ministry of Defence, says that either Gordon Brown or his successor at the next general election faces a clear choice: either to “repair the damage” of over-stretch in Iraq and Afghanistan or to “lower our profile in the world at large”.

He said: …”In the next five years, at current spending levels, the UK will become a middling second division military power, behind countries like India and Japan.

“It is worth pointing out that repairing the armed forces, and restoring balance and morale, is probably more important than acquiring some of the new capital equipment.”

Among the projects which could be cut if the Government does not increase defence spending are the aircraft carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, which will cost £2 billion each; the Harrier jump jet’s replacement, the F-35, which will cost £15bn, or even the replacement for the submarine-borne Trident nuclear missile, which will cost £40-£70bn over 30 years.

Mr Edwards said: “The United Kingdom’s armed forces have been engaged in almost continuous operations for the past 20 years.

“It used to be said that Britain punched above its weight in world affairs, but more recently this has meant that our overstretched armed forces have had to punch above their budget, a far more difficult feat.”

Mr Edwards said the government had delayed making a decision on defence spending until after the next general election by keeping everything “in the air”, such as orders for two aircraft carriers, which have been put back by two years…

“We can’t continue to ask the brave men and women of our armed forces to do what they are doing on the resources that have been given to them, and the Conservatives will conduct an immediate review of defence spending on entering office.”

The report has been endorsed by patrons including Lord Owen and the former chiefs of the defence staff General The Lord Guthrie and Marshal of the RAF Sir Peter Harding. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/defence/4903234/British-military-facing-becoming-second-division-without-major-spending-increase.html

So Britain’s military is no longer “great” (in the sense that its size and total force/influence is much less than it once was) and is becoming second rate. This to a degree will happen in the U.S.A. as its massive deficits will result in less military spending in certain key strategic areas.

The financial problems in both the UK and the USA will result in those nations asking (and expecting) the EU to fill in the gaps (which some within the EU are now hoping to do, see for example, EU Votes for New Military). And while the UK is in the EU, the European Union will still turn against it, as it is now sometimes now starting to do.

The Bible both predicted the rise and the fall of the Anglo-American powers. It also predicts the rise of a massive European power led by the King of the North that will have ties to an ecumenical form of religion claiming to be Christianity. More and more pieces needed for the fulfillment of future Bible prophecies are coming together.

Several articles of possibly related interest may include:

Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, British, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States?
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? What is ahead for Europe?
End of Mayan Calendar 2012–Might 2012 Mean Something? There is a Mayan calendar prediction for change in 2012. 2012 changes were also centuries ago predicted by the Hopi Native Americans (the Hindus may have some predictions for the next decade as well). Do these Mayan/Hindu/Hopi prophecies have any value? Why might Satan have inspired this date? Does the Dresden codex show destruction of the earth by flood? Can the great tribulation start before 2012?