View Full Version : Do we need more Defence cuts?
From the BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7276277.stm)
"China says it plans to increase military spending by nearly 18% this year, to 417.8bn yuan ($59bn; £30bn).
The figure was revealed ahead of China's annual parliamentary session, which begins on Wednesday.
Washington claims that the real Chinese defence budget is at least double the stated amount. "
MOSTAFA
4th Mar 2008, 14:18
I didn't think we did "Defence" anymore - just attack!
Flyingblind
4th Mar 2008, 20:39
So the Dragon is a sharpening its claws, hmmm what would be that for, lets see Olympics this year....not good to start anything then, how about in say 2-3 years time with a 'Soft' Democrat in the White House and when all the good Mill stuff starts coming online.
Pesky little island that requires 're-educating' anyone?
Lima Juliet
4th Mar 2008, 21:00
YJ 91
http://www.fav-club.com/articulos/flankeranida/YJ-91.jpg
PL 12
http://cnair.top81.cn/missiles/J-10_PL-12b.jpg
These could make things interesting for PACAF...
Almost_done
4th Mar 2008, 21:12
For Defence cuts I'd ask for the current heads of the Government, Secretary for Defence/Scotland , Treasuary Secretary and possibly the head of the Defence Staffs!!
Ahhhh sorry I got the wrong idea of cuts.......................I was being a immoderate member of the I***** F***** there.
Almost_done
4th Mar 2008, 21:42
Damn for the first time ever I have to agree with AIDU.
Oh that hurt
Beatriz Fontana
4th Mar 2008, 22:56
If you listen very carefully, you can hear the pips squeaking...
It just Don't mean nothing coming from a Political Armed Forces DESTROYER Type of Warfare! I cannot for the life of me figure out why what a politico says is usually taken at Face! If anyone has the PARTS and SMARTS for that it's the Dog Soldier up front doing his or her thing to keep the Flag Flyin! Some (I'm sorry to say this,BUT)Dips:mad:t back in the world don't know Squat! Who the F:mad::mad:! or what the F:mad::mad:! they say to do is wrong?"A young man told me this when he remembered being told to load A.toA Missiles instead of A.toG, when the whole Boat knew there was a small but tough group of guys in the woods! Some DIPS:mad:T back in Washington was telling them to go after a so called squad of Migs 30 Kliks up Country! Answer please,who knows best?
mutleyfour
5th Mar 2008, 07:39
According to Mr Cameron (BBC News last night) all we need is our Op Tour R & R to commence on landing in UK.
You see, the Tories have it sewn up folks, vote Tory!
whowhenwhy
5th Mar 2008, 07:52
As usual, the BBC are only reporting part of what was said - according to something that I read yesterday, Cameron has said up a "Military Covenant Commission" to investigate what needs to be done to restore what he has said is "well and truly broken." That sounds more like it and alongside the huge surplus which the NHS are saying that they're going to have this year, which will obviously be ploughed back into defence, surely we should all start feeling our morale increase.....:E
mutleyfour
5th Mar 2008, 08:36
Whowhenwhy
Mr Cameron intimated that the MoD wantonly waste Billions of Tax Payers money and needs to sort itself out, in particular he sited the money wasted on its Whitehall HQ:
Yet defence spending is at it lowest levels since the 1930s our troops are around 5,500 under strength and they are regularly sent into action without necessary equipment like night vision goggles and armoured vehicles. All this, at a time when the MoD is spending over £2 billion on refurbishing its Whitehall Headquarters.
Taken from the Conservative Website;
http://www.conservatives.com/tile.do?def=news.story.page&obj_id=142746&speeches=1
I'm not a politician but I read that to mean, you have enough money its just being miss spent and you'll get no more from me.
Lazer-Hound
5th Mar 2008, 09:12
Perhaps someone could explain what, exactly, China's defence expenditure has to do with the UK?
They're a long way away, and anything we could deploy at that distance would look pretty pathetic in a PRC/NK vs US/Japan/SK/Singapore/Aus/Taiwan scenario. The risks of our getting involved would vastly outweigh any benefits we could gain by having a miniscule effect on the final outcome.
When 2 giants start squaring up to each other, it behooves pygmies like the UK to get the **** out of their way.
BellEndBob
5th Mar 2008, 10:32
By the time China ramps up as a fully equipped world military superpower we in the UK will be employed as their gardeners, drivers, nanny's and cleaners. If we try to step out of line Russia will turn our lights and heating off, the Arabs, Indians and Chinese will turn off our money supply and we will all starve because the remainder of the EU will refuse to feed us. The USA will have been subsumed into Latin America.
To that end we would be better off talking about starting a resistance movement. Even then, we would still need significant investment. :(
World War 3 is in full swing. It is truly global and it is economic. Oh yes, and we are losing big time.
Never mind 'Band of Brothers', we need a band of decent Investment Bankers and some gutsy politicians.
Elmlea
5th Mar 2008, 11:26
I'm not a politician but I read that to mean, you have enough money its just being miss spent and you'll get no more from me.
I think, unfortunately, you're right. He was quoted in The Times this morning as saying that there needed to be a concerted effort to "get more of our money to the front line." That implies to me that the total amount spent's unlikely to vary.
That said, an extra 2 billion wouldn't go amiss, even if it came through not refurbishing main building.