The new British Defense Minister, Dan Jarvis, has secured an additional £1.5 billion for the UK’s long-delayed defense investment plan.
Most of these funds are set to be spent on drones aimed at deterring Russia and Iran, as reported by The Guardian.
Disputes over covering an £18 billion funding shortfall led to the resignation of John Healey as head of the Ministry of Defense and raised questions about the UK's commitments to NATO.
However, on Monday, the alliance's secretary-general told The Guardian that he is confident the United Kingdom will meet its obligations.
Two sources stated that the deficit has been reduced by £15 billion after Dan Jarvis managed to persuade Rachel Reeves, the Finance Minister, to allocate just over the promised £13.5 billion to the Ministry of Defense, which his predecessor resigned in protest against the funding package.
These funds have allowed Jarvis to increase the already promised investment for drones from £4 billion to £5 billion over the next four years, as part of an agreement that Keir Starmer desperately wanted to finalize before leaving office.
Some of the additional defense funds were obtained by requesting other government departments to cut their investment budgets by at least 1%, in one of the most tense disputes in the Ministry of Defense in recent years.
Jarvis's associates stated that he wanted to be able to "look people in the eye" when the plan is published. At the same time, individuals close to Rachel Reeves said that they found working with Jarvis easier than with Healey, who had become increasingly frustrated in the final weeks of his tenure as Defense Minister.
A person close to the Chancellor added that, unlike Healey, Jarvis negotiated directly with Rachel Reeves, without going through the Prime Minister, which facilitated reaching an agreement. A week earlier, Jarvis had already secured an additional billion pounds and was trying to obtain more funds in a final round of negotiations.
Healey has closely monitored developments since his departure and is expected to speak in the Commons on Tuesday when the 80-page document, covering dozens of defense projects, from frigates to nuclear submarines, will be presented to MPs.
The Royal Marines Commandos will receive crewless fast boats produced by Kraken Technology from Fareham, Hampshire, one of the additional commitments obtained by Jarvis from the Treasury.
According to military sources, these will be deployed as part of a peacekeeping mission in the Strait of Hormuz to help detect hostile drones in case the United States and Iran reach a sustainable peace agreement.