The UK will lead a European initiative committing around a dozen NATO allies to spend $50 billion, roughly £37 billion, on deep precision strike capabilities over the next ten years, Downing Street has announced, in a press release the government published in Russian alongside English.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer was to convene the partner nations at the NATO summit in Ankara to launch the initiative, which the government said will deliver the most advanced long-range weapons NATO will have at its disposal, with the ability to strike targets from no less than 300 kilometres away to, in some cases, beyond 2,000 kilometres, with pinpoint accuracy. Downing Street described the initiative as further evidence of allies stepping up to build a stronger, more European NATO, and said it will put deep precision strike at the centre of the alliance’s defence agenda next year, enabling European allies to share expertise, technology and industrial collaboration to advance capability rapidly.
Starmer said: “I am determined to ensure the safety of the UK and our Allies and to do that, we must step up to deliver a stronger, more European NATO. The UK is already working with partners to develop exquisite capability that will give our Armed Forces the ability to defend and deter thousands of kilometres from the front line, but this UK-led initiative will allow us to step up our cooperation, bringing European Allies together to ensure NATO remains safe and secure for years to come.” The government cited Ukraine’s use of long-range strikes against logistics hubs deep behind Russian lines as evidence of the game-changing battlefield impact such systems can have.
The announcement rolls together the UK’s existing deep strike commitments under a single European banner. Britain has already put £3 billion behind its own long-range fires programmes in the Defence Investment Plan, including £770 million over four years for a joint stealth and hypersonic weapons programme with Germany under the Trinity House agreement, initially focused on ground-launched capability with a range beyond 2,000 kilometres and expected in service in the 2030s, and £1.4 billion for Stratus, the trilateral successor to Storm Shadow being developed with France and Italy, which already sustains more than 1,300 jobs at MBDA in Stevenage and Bolton. The UK is separately joining the American and Australian Precision Strike Missile programme to give the Army a supersonic ballistic missile reaching up to 500 kilometres.
Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis said: “We are building the weapons of the future to keep the UK and NATO secure for decades to come, backed by billions of pounds and working with our closest European allies. Our new suite of deep precision strike weapons will give our forces the ability to strike targets hundreds of kilometres away with great accuracy, strengthening NATO and deterring our adversaries.” Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the capability sends “a clear message to President Putin; NATO is stronger, more European and ready to defend our citizens against the long-term threat posed by him and the Russian state.”
Downing Street said the Prime Minister would use the summit to underline the scale of the Russian threat, citing more than 700 NATO interceptions of Russian aircraft approaching allied airspace over the past two years and a 30 per cent surge in Russian military activity around UK waters, while stressing that the alliance does not seek confrontation with Russia but must be ready to defend every ally.
Wow £50 billion, this is great, I am amazed France is letting us lead it but then after FCAS I can’t imagine anyone wants to work with the French on such a large and important project. £50 billion into cruise and ballistic missiles could easily see anything from 20,000 to 70,000 weapons acquired.
That is the kind of deterrent that would keep any aggressor at bay. The UK is definitely the right country to lead this, UK industry has already proven itself well adept.
The United Kingdom relies on a multi-layered, but numerically restricted network to protect critical domestic military facilities.
The primary GBAD asset is the Sky Sabre missile system. This utilizes an agile multibeam radar to engage multiple targets simultaneously up to 25 kilometres away. However, fewer than ten batteries exist globally, with several units deployed overseas to regions like Poland and the Falkland Islands. Airspace protection otherwise relies on RAF Typhoon fighter jets, via Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) operations.
Strategic analyses identify critical capability limits:-
Altitude and Speed Limits: Existing GBAD assets cannot intercept high-altitude ballistic or hypersonic missiles due to low altitude ceilings.
Coverage Gaps: The limited number of available systems leaves several inland facilities unshielded by ground-based missile cover.
Availability: While Type 45 destroyers provide advanced naval air defence, engine problems and the Power Improvement Project mean at least half the fleet remains alongside in maintenance.
To secure physical bases, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) is systematically upgrading perimeter infrastructure under the National Protective Security Authority framework
Standard boundary fences are being replaced with high-security palisade and rigid mesh designs fitted with anti-climb curves
Entry points now feature automated sliding gates with crash-rated Hostile Vehicle Mitigation (HVM) technology designed to stop heavy trucks.
Through Project SENSOREM, bases are introducing AI-enabled thermal imaging and micro-radar to monitor perimeters continuously.
At a time when the Russian FSB is apparently operating inside the UK with complete immunity, having undertaken many successful sabotage operations, I suggest that those responsible for the defence of the realm get real and start taking GBAD seriously.