Strategic Defence Review

The U.K. Government launched a Strategic Defence Review immediately after its election in May 1997. The parameters came from the Government’s manifesto: strong defense, security based on NATO, and retention of Trident missile submarines combined with multinational arms control. The results appeared in July 1998 in a white paper, Strategic Defence Review: Modern Forces for the Modern World. Defence Secretary George Robertson called the review radical, "modernising and reshaping our armed forces to meet the needs of the 21st century, reflecting a changing world in which the confrontation of the Cold War has been replaced by a complex mixture of uncertainty and instability."

Since the end of the Cold War, like other Allies, the United Kingdom had progressively reduced defense spending and force levels. During 1990-98 the armed forces decreased from 315,000 to 210,000 personnel. Conventionally armed submarine numbers decreased from 28 to 12, destroyers and frigates from 48 to 35, infantry battalions from 55 to 40. Tank numbers had fallen by 45 percent, RAF aircraft numbers by 30 percent.

But there had been no comprehensive review of military roles and structures. Cuts were made roughly proportionately rather than by shifting resources strategically to reflect new requirements. The increasing frequency of extended overseas deployments, notably in the Balkans, revealed weaknesses in logistic support and an increasing over-stretching of military forces.

The SDR was the first fundamental re-appraisal of the U.K.’s post-Cold War defense posture. The starting point was a policy framework devised by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. That was converted into eight Missions for the armed forces that were further developed into 28 Military Tasks. The forces, capabilities, equipment, and support needed were then assessed.

A further innovation was the open and inclusive process. Extensive consultation took place with parliament, the public, outside specialists, and defense personnel through open seminars led by Ministers. The MOD also received hundreds of written submissions, as well as advice from an expert panel, academics, industrialists, trade unionists, scientists, and others. There was close liaison with Allies, for example, talks with the U.S. Department of Defense Program Analysis and Evaluation staff and other participants in the Quadrennial Defense Review.

U.K. Security Priorities and the Strategic Environment

The setting of the SDR is that Britain is a major European state, whose economic and political future is as part of Europe. Britain has a fundamental interest in Europe’s security and stability and in NATO effectiveness as a collective political and military instrument to underpin them. European security is also reinforced by other means, including conflict-prevention by the Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe, and European Union (EU) success in extending prosperity and stability, especially through its Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).

But Britain’s interests are not confined to Europe. Its economy is founded on international trade—U.K. exports form a higher proportion of GDP than for the United States, Japan, Germany, or France. Outside Europe, British interests are most likely to be affected by events in the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean. So, U.K. national security and prosperity also depend on promoting wider international stability, freedom, and economic development, and on the work of multinational organizations, above all the United Nations.

There is today no direct military threat to the United Kingdom or Western Europe, nor is one likely to re-emerge. But this cannot be taken for granted. NATO enlargement and defense cooperation programs will help strengthen the trend. Nonetheless, instability in Europe, as in the Balkans, or beyond, as in Africa, can threaten U.K. security directly or indirectly. With weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and missile technology proliferating, dangerous regimes elsewhere threaten vital economic interests and international stability. It is noteworthy that since 1990 more British troops have been on active operations at any one time than during the Cold War.

Future Roles and Shape of U.K. Armed Forces

Hitherto U.K. defense planning was based on three Defence Roles: protecting the United Kingdom and Dependent Territories, insuring against major external threats to the United Kingdom and Allies, and contributing to wider international peace and stability. Over time, this framework has become inadequate, for example, giving insufficient prominence to the range of operations under Role Three. The SDR rectifies this with eight new Defence Missions, giving a more accurate and balanced statement of the roles of the armed forces and a clearer basis for planning. Inclusion of Defence Diplomacy reflects the importance to U.K. security of building and maintaining trust and preventing conflict. The Missions also anticipate growing calls for contributions to international peace support and humanitarian operations, some of which could be militarily very demanding.

These missions include:

1. Peacetime Security
2. Security of the Overseas Territories
3. Defence Diplomacy
4. Support to Wider British Interests
5. Peace Support and Humanitarian Operations
6. Regional Conflict outside the NATO Area
7. Regional Conflict inside the NATO Area
8. Strategic Attack on NATO.

A crucial innovation of the SDR was the rigorous intellectual framework used to assess future force structures. First, changes in the nature of future operations were considered. In place of an intense conflict of relatively short duration, future operations might be smaller in scale but longer lasting and farther afield, with little local infrastructure. There would be more need for expeditionary forces requiring increased lift, logistic support, and extended communications. At sea the emphasis would move from large-scale, open-ocean operations toward littoral operations and force projection. The increasing tempo of land operations would demand greater deployability and mobility, precision and range of firepower, and force protection. Air superiority and air defense would be vital for many deployed operations, requiring a continued balanced mix of aircraft but more emphasis on precision missiles and transport aircraft.

Second, a specific benchmark was adopted to plan the size and shape of the force, based on planning assumptions about required scales of effort, readiness levels, and endurance and concurrency of operations. The yardstick was that the United Kingdom should be able to meet continuing commitments such as in Northern Ireland and either conduct operations similar in scale and duration to the Gulf War (when the United Kingdom deployed an armored division, 26 major warships, and over 80 combat aircraft) or undertake a more extended deployment on a lesser scale, as in Bosnia, and retain the capacity for a second major deployment, for example, a combat brigade and appropriate naval and air forces.

The SDR conclusions reflect an international environment that is in many ways more demanding. Undertaking smaller but frequent, often simultaneous and sometimes prolonged operations can be harder than preparing for a single, worst-case conflict. There will be more use of armed forces to deter or manage crises. They must have the military capabilities and flexibility to respond rapidly and effectively to a wider range of tasks.

The restructured armed forces will have a new generation of equipment, including attack helicopters, long-range precision munitions, digitized command and control, new aircraft carriers, submarines, escorts, the Eurofighter aircraft, and a successor to the Tornado. Other capabilities planned or entering service include ASTOR airborne ground surveillance radar, Phoenix unmanned target acquisition vehicles, Cobra artillery-locating radar, and Tracer battlefield reconnaissance vehicles. New information and communication systems will integrate sensors, weapons, platforms, and logistics (e.g., a secure intranet for deployed operations), the Bowman combat radio, and upgraded satellite communications. Force structure and the balance of investment between weapons, platforms, and other systems will be adjusted as new capabilities come available.

Procurement and Support

The SDR will also bring major changes in equipment procurement and defense support to secure greater economy, efficiency, and effectiveness.

In procurement, separate approaches will be introduced for major and minor projects and commodity and other low-risk items, and a through-life approach to projects will be adopted, covering both acquisition and in-service support. Single project teams will combine requirements, technology and evaluation, procurement, and logistics functions. Approval procedures will be simplified, with two not three key decision points, to allow greater responsiveness to technological change. These changes should mean faster, cheaper, and better procurement and in-service support.

Substantial savings have already been made by reforming support, including new Defence Agencies and more private sector involvement. These efforts will continue. Further emphasis will be placed on a joint approach, as in operations. Merging all Service logistics into one organization under a Chief of Defence Logistics will facilitate further rationalization. New Agencies will be responsible for storage and distribution of all non-explosive stores and repair and overhaul of all military aircraft. A new Defence Transport and Movements Organization will control large-scale movements of personnel and materiel. Major savings will be made by reducing stockholdings and defense real estate.

The Strategic Forum provides summaries of work by members and guests of the Institute for National Strategic Studies and the National Defense University faculty. These include reports of original research, synopses of seminars and conferences,the results of unclassified war games, and digests of remarks by distinguished speakers.

Editor in Chief - Hans Binnendijk

Editor - Jonathan W. PierceNOTE

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