Latest news with #UKMinistryofDefence
The Star
12 hours ago
- Politics
- The Star
China condemns British warship's 'troublemaking' Taiwan Strait transit
Britain's Royal Navy said the patrol vessel HMS Spey conducted a routine navigation through the narrow waterway that was part of a long-planned deployment. - UK Ministry of Defence via ST/ANN BEIJING/TAIPEI: China's military on Friday (June 20) condemned the sailing of a British warship through the Taiwan Strait as a deliberate attempt to "cause trouble", as Taiwan's president ordered stepped-up monitoring in response to Chinese military activities. Britain's Royal Navy said the patrol vessel HMS Spey conducted a routine navigation through the narrow waterway that was part of a long-planned deployment and took place in full compliance with international law. China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, considers the strait to be Chinese waters. Taiwan, the United States and many of its allies say it is an international waterway. The Eastern Theatre Command of China's People's Liberation Army said the Wednesday sailing of the ship was "public hyping" and that its forces followed and monitored the Spey. "The British side's remarks distort legal principles and mislead the public; its actions deliberately cause trouble and disrupt things, undermining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait," it said in a statement. "Troops in the theatre are on high alert at all times and will resolutely counter all threats and provocations." Taiwan's government welcomed the sailing. "The foreign ministry welcomes and affirms the British side once again taking concrete actions to defend the freedom of navigation in the Taiwan Strait, demonstrating its firm position that the Taiwan Strait is international waters," the ministry said in a statement. The last time a British warship sailed through the strait was in 2021, when HMS Richmond was deployed in the East China Sea en route to Vietnam. Chinese military followed it at the time and warned it away. The latest passage comes at a time when Britain and China are seeking to mend their relations, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer expected to visit Beijing later this year - the first trip to the country by a British leader since 2018. US Navy ships sail through the strait around once every two months, sometimes accompanied by allied nations. - Reuters
India Today
5 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
North Korean troops suffer over 6,000 casualties in Ukraine War: UK intelligence
North Korean soldiers fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine have suffered more than 6,000 casualties, according to British Defence intelligence. This number represents more than half of the over 11,000 North Korean troops deployed to the Kursk region in UK Ministry of Defence shared on its official X account on Sunday: "Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) forces have highly likely sustained more than 6,000 casualties in offensive combat operations against Ukrainian forces in twhe Russian oblast of Kursk. The total casualties amount to more than half of the approximately 11,000 DPRK troops initially deployed to the Kursk region. Open-source reports suggest DPRK has subsequently deployed limited numbers of additional troops to Kursk. Significant DPRK casualty rates have almost certainly been sustained primarily through large, highly attritional dismounted assaults." advertisement"On 04 June 2025, Russian Security Council Secretary and ex-Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu reportedly visited DPRK for a meeting with DPRK leader Kim Jong Un, his second in less than three months. Shoigu has highly likely been a key interlocutor with DPRK regarding DPRK's support to Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine," it added. "DPRK operations have thus far been confined to the Kursk region. Any decision to deploy into internationally recognised, sovereign Ukrainian territory in support of Russian forces would almost certainly require sign-off from both Russia's President Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un. The total casualties represent over 50% of the North Korean troops originally deployed. Open sources suggest that North Korea has sent a small number of extra soldiers to support their forces in the region," the statement KOREA WILL ALWAYS STAND WITH RUSSIA, KIM TELLS PUTINadvertisementEarlier this week, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said in a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin that his country will always stand with Moscow, state media a message for Russia Day, a patriotic holiday celebrating Russia's independence, Kim called Putin his "dearest comrade" and praised their bilateral relations as a "genuine relationship between comrades-in-arms," KCNA reported."It is an unshakable will of the government of the DPRK and of my own steadfastly to carry on the DPRK-Russia relations," Kim was quoted as inputs from ReutersTrending Reel
Time of India
04-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
From 10,000 to 1,00,000 drones: UK increases drone deliveries to Ukraine days after Operation Spider's Web
The United Kingdom is planning to ramp up its support to Ukraine in its ongoing conflict with Russia. The country will supply 1,00,000 drones to Ukraine, a tenfold increase from the 10,000 it is currently arming Ukraine with, in 2025. The UK Ministry of Defence , in a statement, said that following the delivery of more than 10,000 drones to Ukraine in 2024, tens of thousands more have already been delivered towards an ambitious new target of 100,000 drones for the current financial year. Defence Secretary John Healey will make the announcement at a 50-nation summit in Brussels. The meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG) will have the German defence minister Boris Pistorius and his Ukrainian counterpart Rustem Umerov in attendance. Also Read: Russia-Ukraine war: How Ukraine's drones broke through and hit vital Russian airbases The record £350m ($ 473m) investment in drones for Ukraine is part of the UK's £4.5bn ($ 6 bn) military support in 2025, the statement informed. Live Events The latest announcement by the UK comes at a time when Russia and Ukraine are witnessing a fresh major escalation in the ongoing war. Kyiv launched a major offensive on Sunday, June 1, against Russia through AI powered drones to attack military aircraft across multiple airbases. Ukraine's latest escalation against Moscow amid the ongoing war came as a part of the operation codenamed Spider's Web. Following the attack, Russia told Ukraine at peace talks on Monday (June 2) that it would only agree to end the conflict if Kyiv gives up new chunks of territory and agrees to limit the size of its army, Reuters reported. The terms presented during peace talks in Istanbul underscored Moscow's refusal to back down on its longstanding war goals despite calls by US President Donald Trump to end the "bloodbath" in Ukraine. Why is UK strengthening Ukraine's military arsenal The UK Defence Ministry statement said that as Kyiv's Armed Forces have managed to demonstrate the effectiveness of drone warfare in defending against what it believes is Putin's illegal invasion, the UK has been doubling down on investment in drones with British defence companies. The UK government is infusing more investment in defence companies including small to medium sized enterprises seeking to support the UK economy and jobs, as part of its Plan for Change. According to the UK government release, Ukrainian units have confirmed that drones provided by the UK have helped stabilise parts of the frontline by driving back attacks from Moscow and protecting Ukrainian lives. Defence intelligence has also confirmed that drones kill more people than artillery on the frontline in Ukraine at present. Economic Times WhatsApp channel )
Time of India
03-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Six Chilling Ways Putin's Russia Could Destroy the UK Within Hours: British Government Warns
Live Events FAQs (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Britain might be hit by waves of kamikaze drones , missiles, and cyber hacks if a war with Russia happens soon. The UK Ministry of Defence says the country is not ready for a full-on war like this. The SDR report is 144 pages long and shows how vulnerable Britain is, as per military bases of the UK are now under constant threat of a possible Russian targeted attack, with sophisticated drones, long-range cruise, ballistic and hypersonic missiles, all on the table for the Kremlin. Key UK targets: Navy bases in Portsmouth, Plymouth, and Clyde. Overseas targets: RAF Akrotiri , Al Minhad Air Base, and Diego Garcia, as per Mail Online report.A digital army of Russian hackers might attack UK government websites, the stock market, communications, and power saboteurs could attack oil rigs, satellite systems, and merchant ships. They might also try to stop trade ships and harm industries that help the UK military. Russia could spread lies and fake news to confuse people, cause panic, and divide society. Russia might damage or block space-based communication systems the UK depends on. UK troops and military spots outside Britain could also be hit hard, as per defences are weak right now, low missile stock, poor recruitment, low morale. The UK's current defences are not enough to stop drone or missile swarms like the ones seen in Ukraine, Israel, and Russia. Recent attacks by Ukraine's cheap kamikaze drones showed how powerful even small weapons can be. Ukraine used vans and drones to destroy two secret Russian airbases, costing Russia £5.2 billion in damage, as per Mail Secretary John Healey said £1 billion will go to boost air and missile defences and start a cyber and electromagnetic warfare unit. £1.5 billion will be spent to build at least six new munitions factories in the UK. The UK plans to buy 7,000 long-range British-made weapons. Britain plans on pushing the defence budget, with more funds for homes for military jets might carry nuclear weapons again. British troops in Estonia will get hundreds of new kamikaze drones called HX-2. The UK cadet force will grow to 250,000 school students for a 'whole of society' defence system, as stated in the United Kingdom is at risk of a potential Russian attack, with reports suggesting that a string of drone attacks, economic sabotage, cyber hacks and propaganda are being prepped by the Kremlin. The country is not well-prepared today, but the government is planning new defences, more weapons, and stronger forces. Experts say it's time for a huge shift in mindset to keep the UK safe in the future, as mentioned in the Mail Online could use drones, missiles, cyber hacks, and fake news to cause say the UK is not fully prepared but is working on improving defences.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The British jet engine that failed in the 'Valley of Death'
"It was going great until it fell apart." Richard Varvill recalls the emotional shock that hits home when a high-tech venture goes off the rails. The former chief technology officer speaks ruefully about his long career trying to bring a revolutionary aerospace engine to fruition at UK firm Reaction Engines. The origins of Reaction Engines go back to the Hotol project in the 1980s. This was a futuristic space plane that caught the public imagination with the prospect of a British aircraft flying beyond the atmosphere. The secret sauce of Hotol was heat exchanger technology, an attempt to cool the super-heated 1,000C air that enters an engine at hypersonic speeds. Without cooling this will melt aluminium, and is, Mr Varvill says, "literally too hot to handle". Fast forward three decades to October 2024 and Reaction Engines was bringing the heat exchanger to life at sites in the UK and US. UK Ministry of Defence funding took the company into hypersonic research with Rolls-Royce for an unmanned aircraft. But that was not enough to keep the business afloat. Rolls-Royce declines to go into details about Reaction's collapse, but Mr Varvill is more specific. "Rolls-Royce said it had other priorities and the UK military has very little money." Aviation is a business with a very long gestation time for a product. It can take 20 years to develop an aircraft. This unforgiving journey is known as crossing the Valley of Death. Mr Varvill knew the business had to raise more funds towards the end of 2024 but big investors were reluctant to jump on board. "The game was being played right to the very end, but to cross the Valley of Death in aerospace is very hard." What was the atmosphere like in those last days as the administrators moved in? "It was pretty grim, we were all called into the lecture theatre and the managing director gave a speech about how the board 'had tried everything'. Then came the unpleasant experience of handing over passes and getting personal items. It was definitely a bad day at the office." This bad day was too much for some. "A few people were in tears. A lot of them were shocked and upset because they'd hoped we could pull it off right up to the end." It was galling for Mr Varvill "because we were turning it around with an improved engine. Just as we were getting close to succeeding we failed. That's a uniquely British characteristic." Did they follow the traditional path after a mass lay-off and head to the nearest pub? "We had a very large party at my house. Otherwise it would have been pretty awful to have put all that effort into the company and not mark it in some way." His former colleague Kathryn Evans headed up the space effort, the work around hypersonic flight for the Ministry of Defence and opportunities to apply the technology in any other commercial areas. When did she know the game was up? "It's tricky to say when I knew it was going wrong, I was very hopeful to the end. While there was a lot of uncertainty there was a strong pipeline of opportunities." She remembers the moment the axe fell and she joined 200 colleagues in the HQ's auditorium. "It was the 31st of October, a Thursday, I knew it was bad news but when you're made redundant with immediate effect there's no time to think about it. We'd all been fighting right to the end so then my adrenalin crashed." And those final hours were recorded. One of her colleagues brought in a Polaroid camera. Portrait photos were taken and stuck on a board with message expressing what Reaction Engines meant to individuals. What did Ms Evans write? "I will very much miss working with brilliant minds in a kind, supportive culture." Since then she's been reflecting "on an unfinished mission and the technology's potential". But her personal pride remains strong. "It was British engineering at its best and it's important for people to hold their heads up high." Her boss Adam Dissel, president of Reaction Engines, ran the US arm of the business. He laments the unsuccessful struggle to wrest more funds from big names in aerospace. "The technology consistently worked and was fairly mature. But some of our strategic investors weren't excited enough to put more money in and that put others off." The main investors were Boeing, BAE Systems and Roll-Royce. He feels they could have done more to give the wider investment community confidence in Reaction Engines. It would have avoided a lot of pain. "My team had put heart and soul into the company and we had a good cry. " Did they really shed tears? "Absolutely, I had my tears at our final meeting where we joined hands and stood up. I said 'We still did great, take a bow." What lessons can we draw for other high-tech ventures? "You definitely have no choice but to be optimistic," says Mr Dissel. The grim procedure of winding down the business took over as passwords and laptops were collected while servers were backed up in case "some future incarnation of the business can be preserved". The company had been going in various guises for 35 years. "We didn't want it to go to rust. I expect the administrator will look for a buyer for the intellectual property assets," Mr Dissel adds. Other former employees also hold out for a phoenix rising from the ashes. But the Valley of Death looms large. "Reaction Engines was playing at the very edge of what was possible. We were working for the fastest engines and highest temperatures. We bit off the hard job," says Mr Dissel. Despite all this Mr Varvill's own epitaph for the business overshadows technological milestones. "We failed because we ran out of money." Why we need 'revolutionary' cooling tech The camera tech propelling shows like Adolescence How to avoid a puncture on the Moon
