The Royal Navy is not yet ready for war, according to General Sir Gwyn Jenkins, the first sea lord, but a defense investigation completed last year indicates it will be ready by the end of this decade. According to The Independent - Main, General Sir Gwyn Jenkins described that the Navy can conduct advanced operations right now, though he acknowledged readiness gaps. The specific aspects of the Navy's unreadiness and details of the defense investigation remain unclear.
The United States has criticized the Royal Navy for not sending ships in support of its war in Iran, with US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth attacking the Navy for not providing vessels to help in Operation Epic Fury, the American-Israeli conflict in Iran. President Donald Trump called on Britain to either buy jet fuel from the US or take it directly from the Strait of Hormuz, as reported in a social media post. The current status of Operation Epic Fury and the UK government's response to the criticism are unknown.
According to the defence investigation that was completed last year, I will be ready for war by the end of this decade.
NATO allies committed to a new target of investing five percent of GDP annually on defense and security by 2035 at a summit in December. All 32 NATO alliance members met the two percent expenditure target last year, according to a report from NATO last Thursday.
I would say that we can conduct advanced operations right now, and if we were told to go to war, of course we would. That is my military duty. But are we as ready as we should be? I don't think we are. We have work to do and I am completely dedicated to the mission.
I also see that among our allies in NATO. I am not trying to scare people and together we have incredible resources.