This was in the defence review 2020 thread in the military aned was published in The Times.
Ben Wallace was accused of sparking a diplomatic incident with the US government after threatening to cancel an order of American-made military helicopters intended for use by Britain’s special forces.
The former defence secretary issued the warning directly to his counterpart in the Pentagon last month before an agreed position had been reached among ministers back in London.
The row, which embroiled the British and American ambassadors, forced Downing Street to intervene in an attempt to defuse tensions.
Wallace, who formally stepped down as defence secretary on Thursday, had hoped to succeed Jens Stoltenberg as the secretary-general of Nato.
In June, Wallace acknowledged that his campaign to take over the military alliance had failed, after President Biden refused to back his candidacy.
Stoltenberg, a former prime minister of Norway, has extended his term by a year. Allied leaders are said to be looking for a former head of state to replace him.
Last month, Wallace publicly voiced his frustration over the lack of support from the White House, telling The Sunday Times: “Why do you not support your closest ally when they put forward a candidate? I think it’s a fair question.”
It can now be disclosed that Wallace, 53, spent his final weeks in office pushing to cancel the deal, worth billions, to buy military helicopters for UK special forces.
The contract involves the purchase of 14 Chinook H-47 extended-range helicopters made by Boeing, which is based in Arlington, Virginia. The first of the new aircraft had been expected to be delivered by 2026.
America said that the helicopters would improve the UK’s capabilities and its ability to contribute to joint operations with the US and other Nato partners.
However, UK sources said that in recent weeks Wallace began to express serious misgivings about the deal. During internal discussions, he proposed cancelling it as part of a cost-cutting exercise to relieve pressure on the MoD’s tight budgets.
Sources close to Wallace said he had tried to cancel the project during the last spending review, but had been assured that delaying it would produce savings of close to £200 million. The costs have since ballooned, rising by approximately £500 million to about £2.3 billion.
Wallace has argued that he could buy two Airbus A400M Atlas transport aircraft for £500 million. The UK’s 60-strong Chinook fleet costs approximately £14,000 an hour to run, a source said.
There is also a debate about whether the UK needs the capability. A source close to Wallace said Britain already had the biggest heavy lift fleet in Europe, and that the money could be better spent investing in medium-lift support helicopters, which are cheaper to run.
There are also concerns that the UK lacks the communications, satellite technology and transport to carry out special forces operations with the Chinooks. “Spending £2.3 billion on this will mean we will have less to spend on medium-lift helicopters that will be British-assembled and made,” the source added.
Others in government disagreed, with one describing the proposal as “mad”. A second added: “It seemed like he was trying to piss off the Americans. That is certainly how some have read it.”
Another said the move led to progress on the deal grinding to a halt. “Everybody realised this was mad and we’ve been sitting on it over the summer. It has certainly caused a flare-up. These things are done on a very long programme of activity, so disrupting all that is not cool.”
A source close to Wallace categorically denied that the issue was in any way related to the Nato job, branding any suggested link “pathetic” and pointing out that he had raised the prospect of cancelling the deal two years ago. They added that Wallace’s concerns were based entirely around cost, capability and the actual value of the deal to the UK.
With the US becoming increasingly alarmed, Jane Hartley, the US ambassador to the UK, wrote to No 10 on August 1 to seek clarity on the future of the deal. Downing Street is understood to have tried to provide assurances to Hartley.
Separately, Karen Pierce, the British ambassador to the US, is understood to have received representations from Washington. In a letter sent back to London, she is understood to have warned No 10 it was a “bad idea” to cancel the deal. “She was very unhappy,” a source familiar with her letter said.
A source said British officials had also tried to reassure their counterparts that the issue would be resolved when Wallace left government. “There has been a lot of reconciliation, just to keep the US reassured.” He was replaced as defence secretary last week by Grant Shapps.
In a letter on August 10 to Lloyd Austin, the US secretary of state for defence, Wallace is said to have made clear that he was considering cancelling the deal.
A source said Wallace’s letter was sent despite there being no agreed position in government. “Meanwhile Wallace is writing to his counterpart in the US saying this might happen, when it’s still being considered privately within the government. It’s quite destructive behaviour.”
It is unclear whether Downing Street was aware or authorised the letter. No 10 declined to comment when approached, as did spokesmen for Hartley and Pierce.
With Shapps taking over from Wallace, sources said the issue remained a “live discussion” in government and would be one of the top items in the new defence secretary’s in-tray. Sunak is understood to be of the view that Shapps should press ahead with the deal.
The Ministry of Defence said last night: “There has been no change to the UK’s future heavy-lift helicopter portfolio. We keep all capability requirements under review to ensure we have a balanced and affordable portfolio which best meets our needs. The US is one of the UK’s closest allies and our defence and intelligence partnership is, and will always be, one of the strongest in the world.”