American concern over British military cuts
Source: Agencies |
October 16, 2010, Saturday
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THE United States is -worried by the military cutbacks being planned by the British -government, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said yesterday.
Britain, which maintains the second-largest foreign force in Afghanistan, is set to announce deep reductions in defense spending as part of its efforts to tackle the country's budget deficit.
Interviewed by the BBC in Brussels, Clinton was asked if Washington was concerned over the scale of the prospective cuts. She said she was, stating that the NATO alliance "has to be maintained."
"Each country has to be able to make its appropriate contributions," she said. "Of course there are cuts that we're making, but then there are new responsibilities, like cyber security or missile -defense, that we're going to have to assume."
Clinton added that she hoped that "despite the budgetary pressures that we all feel, we will stay committed to mutual efforts."
Britain's defense spending review is still being finalized and is due to be published next week. The precise details haven't yet been made public, but officials had been seeking reductions of up to 10 percent in the 37 billion pounds (US$59 billion) Defense Ministry budget between 2011 and 2015.
The scale of the cuts have caused unease in Britain's armed forces. In a letter leaked to a British newspaper last month, Britain's defense minister Liam Fox warned Prime Minister David Cameron that his staff had found that cutting 4 billion pounds from its budget was "financially and intellectually impossible."
"Party, media, military and the international reaction will be brutal if we do not recognize the dangers and continue to push for cuts at a time when we are at war," Fox said.
Cameron's office said it has almost finalized plans for the spending cuts. Asked about Clinton's comments, it stated that "she is right when she says that each country has to be able to make its appropriate contribution to common defense in NATO -- and -Britain will always do that."
Britain, which maintains the second-largest foreign force in Afghanistan, is set to announce deep reductions in defense spending as part of its efforts to tackle the country's budget deficit.
Interviewed by the BBC in Brussels, Clinton was asked if Washington was concerned over the scale of the prospective cuts. She said she was, stating that the NATO alliance "has to be maintained."
"Each country has to be able to make its appropriate contributions," she said. "Of course there are cuts that we're making, but then there are new responsibilities, like cyber security or missile -defense, that we're going to have to assume."
Clinton added that she hoped that "despite the budgetary pressures that we all feel, we will stay committed to mutual efforts."
Britain's defense spending review is still being finalized and is due to be published next week. The precise details haven't yet been made public, but officials had been seeking reductions of up to 10 percent in the 37 billion pounds (US$59 billion) Defense Ministry budget between 2011 and 2015.
The scale of the cuts have caused unease in Britain's armed forces. In a letter leaked to a British newspaper last month, Britain's defense minister Liam Fox warned Prime Minister David Cameron that his staff had found that cutting 4 billion pounds from its budget was "financially and intellectually impossible."
"Party, media, military and the international reaction will be brutal if we do not recognize the dangers and continue to push for cuts at a time when we are at war," Fox said.
Cameron's office said it has almost finalized plans for the spending cuts. Asked about Clinton's comments, it stated that "she is right when she says that each country has to be able to make its appropriate contribution to common defense in NATO -- and -Britain will always do that."
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