Is it "to reassure the United States"?, This replacement
According to the Times website on September 2nd, the resignation of British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace was due to his threat to cancel the Chinook helicopter deal, which sparked a diplomatic dispute with the United States.
According to reports, Ben Wallace reportedly threatened to cancel orders for American military helicopters for the British special forces. Last month, the UK Secretary of Defense issued a warning directly to the US Secretary of Defense, at a time when there was no consensus within the UK.
The report revealed that ambassadors from both the UK and the US were involved in this dispute, and Downing Street had to intervene to ease the tension.
Wallace officially resigned from his position as Minister of Defense on August 31st, originally hoping to replace Jens Stoltenberg as NATO Secretary General.
In June of this year, Wallace admitted that his efforts to run for NATO Secretary General had failed due to US President Biden's refusal to support.
Former Norwegian Prime Minister Stoltenberg's term as NATO Secretary General has been extended for one year. It is said that Allied leaders are looking for a former head of state to replace him.
According to reports, last month, Wallace publicly expressed disappointment that the White House did not support him. He told The Sunday Times that what can now be disclosed is that 53 year old Wallace sought to cancel a deal to purchase US made military helicopters for British special forces during his last few weeks as Secretary of Defense. This transaction is worth billions of pounds.
This transaction involves the purchase of 14 Chinook H-47 extended range helicopters manufactured by Boeing, headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. The first new aircraft is expected to be delivered in 2026.
According to sources, in recent weeks, Wallace has begun to express serious concerns about this transaction. In internal discussions, he proposed to cancel the transaction as part of cost reduction measures to alleviate the pressure on the tight budget of the Ministry of Defense.
Wallace stated that he can spend £ 500 million to purchase two Airbus A400M military transport aircraft. A source said that the operating cost of over 60 Chinook helicopters in the UK is approximately £ 14000 per hour.
There is also controversy over whether the UK needs this capability. A source close to Wallace said that the UK already has the largest fleet of heavy-duty helicopters in Europe, and the funds used to purchase Chinook helicopters can be better invested in medium-sized support helicopters, which have lower operating costs.
The source added, "Spending £ 2.3 billion on this type of helicopter means we will reduce spending on medium-sized helicopters, which will be assembled and manufactured in the UK."
Other government officials disagree with this view, with one official describing the proposal as "crazy". Another added, "He seems to be trying to annoy Americans. Some people must interpret it that way."
Another government official stated that this move led to a halt in transactions.
According to the report, a source firmly denied any connection between this and Wallace's pursuit of the position of NATO Secretary General, stating that any suggestion of a connection between the two is "sad". Wallace proposed the possibility of canceling this transaction two years ago. They added that Wallace's concerns are entirely based on cost, capability, and the actual value of this transaction to the UK.
According to reports, as concerns from the United States escalate, US Ambassador to the UK Jane Hartley wrote a letter to the Prime Minister's residence on August 1, requesting clarification from the UK regarding the future of this transaction. It is reported that the Prime Minister's residence attempted to provide assurance to Hartley.
In addition, it is reported that the British Ambassador to the United States, Karen Pierce, has received representations from Washington. She warned 10 Downing Street in a letter sent back to London that canceling the transaction was a "bad idea". A source familiar with the content of the letter said, "She is very unhappy."
A source said that British officials are also trying to assure their American counterparts that this issue will be resolved once Wallace leaves the government. The source said, "In order to reassure the United States, both sides have reached a lot of reconciliation." Last week, Grant Sharps took over as Secretary of Defense from Wallace.
