Rishi Sunak isn’t very bright sending 20,000 soldiers to reinforce NATO.
That’s nearly a quarter of the force Britain has.
In the 2000s Britain had a total fighting force of 155,000 and that has dropped sharply in the past two decades down to 109,000 which is the latest figure for the hear 2020.
In 2024 I am expecting that figure to have dropped even further given that the navy which is part of the British Armed Forces is facing difficulties in recruiting new sailors. Their size in 2017 was down to 29,280 compared to the 861,000 in 1945.
My point is that their armed forces is dwindling compared to other countries. Yes it can be argued that because of advances in technology and AI they don’t need that many officers, when majority of the fighting will be done by drones, missiles and unmanned vehicles. However sending in a large force like this presents several challenges.
- They’re going to send about 16,000 soldiers into Eastern Europe. They are there with 30 allies NATO countries including Sweden. They will have an aircraft strike carrier group with Typhoons and F-35. With all this strength they’re going to risk escalation with Russia. Opening a second front, as Yemen is the 1st one.
- Sending a large part of your force away thousands of miles presents a logistical challenge. You’ll be delivering large amounts of supplies and material. Let’s say for argument sake Russia finds a way to cut off supply and logistics of the men, they’ll be stuck there like prime targets.
- Losing 20,000 men is a huge loss given that there are already recruitment difficulties amongst the general public. People are less inclined to join the forces yet you want to send more men to your deaths instead of coming to a diplomatic compromise.
Sending in a quarter of your forces is reckless. If you send in such a large to reinforce other countries will you still have enough people defending your borders or will you have enough people to send elsewhere like Yemen?
The Houthis haven’t been deterred, they’ve attacked another ship and this times it was a US cargo ship. British ships will also be targeted. They’re prepared to fight a multi-prolonged war. Their infrastructure is mobile, mean they can move missiles and bases whenever they want. In such a situation to tackle them they’ll have to do a ground invasion.
Doing a ground invasion will be like Normandy beach times a hundred. You’ll have to find a way to land your troops whilst taking hits from missiles and then try to set up a base. America has already said that they have little to no intel on where those bases are, they have old information, because the Houthis keeping moving their infrastructure. They don’t stay in the same place. The terrain is harsher and much tougher than Afghanistan. It’s a mountainous region and to navigate and fight in an unknown land where it’s hard to gather intel is extremely difficult.
That’s not even the worst part. Like I said before Britain will be fighting a two front war. The Houthis are not. Russia is not. Britain is risking stretching itself thin militarily and economically. Who do you think is going to pick up the bill for the massive arms purchases? The general public. Who do you think is going to face the brunt of global inflation and cost of living? The general public.
And whose fault was it that after bombing Yemen the Houthis weren’t deterred instead continued their campaign, but now with 70% of shops turning away from the Red Sea, including British ships.
It wasn’t the general public, it was America and Britain. He has said that he will do whatever it takes to stop the Houthis. In that current situation that Britain is in, with the cost of living crisis, that’s a very dangerous statement to make, because it tells us that the cost of living won’t be the only thing plaguing Britain for 2024.
2024 is already shaping up to be a tough yeah for the world, we are seeing massive escalations kick off as western hegemony is dying. The west is doing everything to keep control, but in their efforts there is no shortage of bad decisions.