Penny Mordaunt expresses concerns that the Navy can't 'keep up' with Russia and China

HMS Diamond (left) next to the American aircraft carrier. The size of the Royal Navy was reduced dramatically. Credit: Ryan D. McLearnon/US Navy/SWNS

Cabinet tensions over defense spending surfaced as Penny Mordaunt warned Britain's national interests would be at risk if the Royal Navy did not keep pace with such countries , like Russia and China.

Ms Mordaunt, a former defense secretary and leadership candidate, tweeted her warning above an image of a press article describing the Royal Navy's decline to a fraction of what it was in the last century.

It happened because Defense Secretary Grant Shapps failed to set a date for achieving the government's target of increasing defense spending to 2.5 percent of GDP, saying it would only be achieved «when economic conditions allow».

It has emerged . Earlier this month, the Navy faced such a severe personnel crisis that the Ministry of Defense (MoD) plans to retire two ships to free up sailors for a new fleet of frigates.

Size of the Royal Navy The Navy has shrunk from 232 ships, including eight aircraft carriers, in 1960 to 30 in 2022, including two new aircraft carriers.

But in her tweet, Ms Mordaunt, an honorary captain in the Royal Navy Reserve, Marine and MP for Portsmouth North, said: “The Royal Navy and its partners must keep pace with the growing capabilities of other countries. Otherwise, Britain's interests cannot be secured.»

«Protect our interests»

Writing in The Sunday Times, she added: “We shouldn't just ask ourselves how much Russia and China are expanding their fleets. , but why.

“The future Royal Navy must be able to continue to protect our interests, which are based entirely on the ability to thwart attempts to deny us access to the seas of certain parts of the world.”

G Mr Shapps was asked by the BBC to set a date for achieving the 2.5 per cent target at a time when he warned of growing global threats.

He said it was «comfortably» above 2 percent of GDP — the NATO benchmark — but not yet at 2.5 percent. “There is an upward trajectory. I cannot give an exact date because we have always said that it will be as long as economic conditions allow. But the fact is that we are working according to plan,” he added.

Responding to Ms Mordaunt's comments, Mr Shapps said: «I'm in a position where there are a lot of people with opinions and a lot of people who have served in the army and armed forces often express them.»

Facing the 'pre-war world'

Last week Mr Shapps made the case for increased Western defense spending, saying Britain was facing a «pre-war world». In his speech last Monday, he outlined the risks posed by countries such as China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, as well as terrorist groups, in an increasingly dangerous world.

The speech was seen as a presentation. Mr Shapps for additional defense expenditure. Before taking up the defense case, Mr Shapps backed spending levels above the Government's target, arguing it should rise to 3 per cent.

Last week Lord Dannatt, the former Chief of Staff of the State, cried foul dwindling army strength, which he said had fallen from 102,000 in 2006 to 74,000 today, “and falling fast.”

He drew parallels with the 1930s, when the army’s “sad” state Britain's armed forces failed to contain Hitler, saying there was a «grave danger of history repeating itself».

But Mr Shapps insisted the army would not fall below 73,000 under the Tories. He said: “It is not expected that this figure will drop to 50,000. In fact, specifically 73 thousand plus reserves.”