It’s been a (long, long) week since the UK officially released its Strategic Defence Review (SDR) and, well, people have thoughts.
The document is meant to lay out the UK’s current defense posture, and indicates what the country thinks are the greatest threats to its national security. It’s also a pretty good indication of where the government and the MoD are going to spend their money and time in the next few years.
This year’s review was particularly hotly anticipated. In case you’ve been living under a rock, President Trump has threatened to dynamite the US’ trans-Atlantic relationships and sent European governments scrambling to up their defense spending and modernize capabilities.
Many hoped the SDR would lay out how the UK intended to protect itself without relying on the US. Here’s what it actually included:
New world order: According to the SDR, the global threat environment is “more serious and less predictable than at any time since the Cold War.”
- The UK plans to up its defense spending to 2.5% by 2027, and (hopefully, fingers crossed) to 3% in the next parliament.
- Many fear, however, that the UK might be biting off more than it can chew, money-wise.
Going nuclear: The SDR put a massive emphasis on upgrading the UK’s nuclear arsenal. The government:
- Plans to ring-fence £15B ($20.3B) for the new Astrea warhead program.
- Aims to build 12 AUKUS-class nuclear submarines, producing one about every 18 months (ambitious!). To date, the UK’s submarine program has faced major delays.
Upgrade ya: The review—at least in theory—emphasizes the development and adoption of new tech by the UK armed forces. According to the SDR, the country’s military will be “ten times more lethal by 2035.”
- The military aims to employ a 20‑40‑40 force mix, with 20% heavy equipment, 40% single-use drones and munitions, and 40% reusable drones.
- The government will invest £1B ($1.36B) in building a “digital targeting web” for battlefield decision-making.
- Following on statements made earlier this spring by UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves, the government will ring-fence £400M ($542.4M) for a “UK Defence Innovation” fund (UKDI) that will be able to find, buy, and integrate innovative tech.
Go boom: The SDR also calls for force expansion and increased spending on conventional weaponry.
- The UK plans to expand the Army by at least 3,000 people (though recruiting numbers have been lagging) and expand reserves by 20%.
- The country plans to produce up to 7,000 long-range precision weapons domestically.
- The government will spend about £1.5B ($2.03B) to build at least six munitions and energetics factories. It will make an additional £6B ($8.14B) munitions investment in the current parliamentary term.
- The document recommends that the Royal Navy also expand its fleet to include more frigates, as well as unmanned and lower-cost vessels.
Race to innovate: The question is, will the SDR actually spur force modernization and defense innovation? Or is it really just a continuation of the status quo?
- Lt. Col. Dan Sawyers, head of jHub, UK Strategic Command’s innovation team, told Tectonic that “innovation is at the heart of” the SDR. “The review empowers innovation teams like the jHub who will play a key role as part of the wider UKDI ecosystem,” he said. JHub has been working for 8 years to bring new tech into the military; he’s glad the approach is being scaled up.
- John Ridge CBE, Chief Adoption Officer at the NATO Innovation Fund, told Tectonic he was pleased by the “ambition” of the SDR. “The clarity of vision regarding the accelerated fielding of uncrewed and autonomous systems in all domains is impressive and provides a clear demand signal to us as a fund,” he said. “The Review clearly signals the urgent need for European venture capital markets to boost technologies that advance [defense, security, and resilience].” He did say, however, that reforming acquisition and procurement processes will be a major task.
- Lt. Col. Timothy Otten, embedded liaison to the UK Strategic Command from DIU, said that the SDR and UKDI have a lot of potential. “The innovation-led, industry-backed approach has the opportunity to deliver a win-win for both industry and the warfighter at wartime pace,” he said. “Success will come down to the design and execution of UKDI,” he added, especially whether the £400M innovation budget is coupled with the necessary personnel and authorities to make change happen.
In other words, it’s all a bit of wait-and-see.