British military is ill-equipped to support Israel as Middle East conflict intensifies: expert
LONDON: Britain lacks the military means to protect Israel from an Iranian ballistic missile attack, defense experts have told The Daily Telegraph.
Iran attacked Israel with nearly 200 long-range ballistic missiles on Tuesday, but Royal Air Force Typhoon aircraft based in Cyprus lacked the weapons needed to intercept them.
Instead, they were relegated to a surveillance role, and the Defense Ministry said they “did not attack any targets.”
Former Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said the Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyer fleet was not equipped to respond to such an attack.
Meanwhile, the two carrier groups are understaffed and would struggle if deployed into active combat zones.
Tom Sharp, a former naval commander, told the Telegraph: Given what is happening in the Middle East and Russia, we need to quickly deliver the ability to provide ballistic missile defense with T-45 destroyers. ”
Ministry of Defense officials told the newspaper that “the military remains open to changes in the situation in the Middle East” and that it had the ability to destroy incoming ballistic missiles.
Royal Air Force fighter jets took part in defending Israel from Iranian missile barrage in April following an Israeli attack on Tehran’s consulate in Damascus. But that Iranian attack involved less sophisticated cruise missiles and drones.
The ballistic missiles used in Tuesday’s attack fly faster and in higher trajectories, making them harder to intercept.
Iran is believed to have spent millions developing its ballistic missile program in recent years, and U.S. intelligence agencies believe it has a stockpile of more than 3,000 missiles.
Britain plans to equip Type 45 jets with the next-generation Aster 30 interceptor to intercept ballistic missiles, but the development plan has been approved by the Ministry of Defense but has not yet begun.
Mr Wallace, who gave the green light to the project, told the Telegraph: “The UK could have the ability to permanently patrol our coasts with Type-45s equipped with upgraded Aster 30s.
“Given the situation we are seeing in the Middle East, we should immediately seek to accelerate the renewal of already planned missile systems.”
The United States could deploy three Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to protect Israel from missile salvos.
British troops were initially sent to the region to carry out missions against Daesh in Iraq and Syria, but their numbers have increased since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 last year.
But after a Telegraph investigation found that the Royal Navy was “not optimally prepared” to deploy to the Red Sea to counter the threat Yemen’s Houthis pose to global shipping due to a lack of manpower. Their fighting ability has been repeatedly questioned. .
A source told the Telegraph: “The Navy is clearly hiding the fact that there is a clear problem with sending sailors to sea. They don’t have enough people to crew the ships they already have, let alone new ones.”
Mr Wallace said Britain’s F-35 aircraft, which fly from its own carrier group, were also inadequately equipped to deal with threats in the Middle East.
“Sadly, due to the slow pace of the US F-35 Integration Program Office, the UK F-35 will not be able to enjoy the full range of weapons we would like to carry.
“This limits its usefulness and means the land-based Typhoon still provides the best strike capability in the Gulf region.”
He added: “If the F-35 was properly equipped with the right missiles, it would be worth sending, but that’s not the case right now. It would be going down there and escorting American aircraft carriers. You won’t be able to use it to its fullest potential.”
“We’re focusing a little bit on drones and group attacks, but if you look at the Red Sea, 94 per cent of attacks on ships involved missiles,” Sharp said.
“Tuesday was 100 percent missiles. Good old missiles aren’t going away. All of this requires more funding.”
