NATO's Western allies are moving too slowly in the adoption of new military technologies, a member of the Defense Review team from the British government has warned.
Photo: Shutterstock
Grace Cassy, former counselor of the British Government for Defense, told Politico that the UK also has “much to go“As regards the adoption of state -of -the -art military technologies.
Strategic Defense Review (SDR), a major independent evaluation of the greatest threats faced by the United Kingdom, has placed a strong emphasis on the need for the kingdom to be “prepared for battle ” through investments in advanced capacities, ammunition and long -range weapons.
Although the ministers accepted all the recommendations, the British Prime Minister Keir Starmer refused to establish a calendar to spend 3% of the country's GDP, an amount that the experts considered minimal to complete the review.
Grace Cassy, an investor in start-ups in the field of security and former counselor of former prime minister Tony Blair, was one of the six external experts elected to contribute to the coordination of the SDR.
She told Politico that the Ukraine war played a central role in the way the evaluators analyzed the new technologies used on the battlefield.
Both sides have adapted quickly to use drones, sensors and jamming systems-Kiev starting from a weaker conventional capacity, and Moscow being limited to what can be purchased due to international sanctions.
“There is a struggle to maintain an advantage that is often short -lived“She said. “The innovation cycles are incredibly short.”
She added that this is especially true in the case of drones, where the contested frequencies can mean that “You can fly with them one day, but maybe a week later you can't. “
In particular, Cassy spoke about slow acquisition processes that prevent the UK, but also about the aversion rooted to risk and an excessive dependence on a handful of major defense providers.
SDR recommended a three -month term for putting into operation of the latest technology, in an attempt to keep up with the rhythm of the modern war.
Cassy, co -founder of Cylon Ventures, said that this lesson is imperative for the entire alliance, emphasizing: “If tomorrow we increase the defense expenses to 5%, but we would remain in our old habits, we would not be prepared for the future.”
“We, NATO – Not only the United Kingdom, but all NATO member states – we must change to better spend this new money ”, he emphasized this.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte asked all member countries to allocate more money for their own defense, warning last week that Russia could be prepared to use military force against NATO within five years.
But Cassy said that other types of attacks in the “gray area” – such as cyber attacks and threats to critical national infrastructure – are even more immediate.
