The military cuts announced Wednesday included two amphibious assault ships, the HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark, while logistics vessels RFA Wave Knight and RFA Wave Ruler will also be cut along with a frigate, HMS Northumberland, that is already in refit during which major structural damage has been discovered.
Eagle said the cut programs — which are being attacked by opposition parties in the U.K. — would save £150 million over the next two years in operating costs helping the Ministry of Defence cut costs quickly. Over five years, savings will amount to £500 million, she said.
“The money that we save in this way … will enable us to spend on dealing with the strategic threats that we’re going to face in future instead of pretending that ships which are never going to go back to sea, should be kept as if they might be,” said Eagle.
Still, Labour’s opponents in the right-wing Reform UK party are pouncing.
Deputy Leader Richard Tice said in a statement Thursday that the cutback plan “not only undermines our military’s readiness, but during a time of increased global tensions, leaves us weak and vulnerable.”
German defense pact
Eagle was in Germany’ port city to push on work building out a general defense cooperation pact agreed by Defense Secretary John Healey and his German counterpart Boris Pistorius in London last month. That teed up collaboration on everything from deep precision strike missile capabilities to joint procurement and shared monitoring of subsea infrastructure.
