Britain's role as one of the world's leading military powers is under threat, an authoritative thinktank warns in a report that directly challenges claims by the prime minister, David Cameron.
The UK has fallen behind Saudi Arabia and is now fifth in the arms expenditure league table, says the latest annual Military Balance survey, published by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).
Responding to US criticism of cuts in military spending, Cameron repeatedly insisted that Britain still had the fourth biggest defence budget.
"We have the fourth largest defence budget anywhere in the world. We are a first-class player in terms of defence and, as long as I am prime minister, that is the way it will stay," Cameron said last month after the former US defence secretary Robert Gates said cuts meant Britain's armed forces were no longer able to stand by the US as a "full partner".
The IISS survey makes it clear that while military spending is falling in the UK and throughout the west, it is rising fast elsewhere, notably in the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region. Greater defence spending will lead to a relative shift towards Asia and away from Europe in a new balance of military power, the report suggests.
The US remains by far the world's biggest spender on weapons, with a defence budget last year amounting to over $600bn (£370bn), followed by China ($112.2bn), Russia ($68.2bn), Saudi Arabia (an estimated $59.6bn) and the UK ($57bn). » | Richard Norton-Taylor | Wednesday, February 05, 2014
