British cut troop number around the world, but Belize safe for now

One month ago, the government of British Prime Minister David Cameroon revealed its Strategic Defense and Security Review and announced substantive cuts to military spending to tackle the deficit. Military spending is to be cut by eight percent which means that British troops on mission in numerous countries could be reduced in numbers or affected in some form or the other.  So what is the future of the British troops in Belize? That question was raised in the House of Lords by Lord Michael Ashcroft when he asked what plans the government had for the military base in Belize. The response came from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Lord Astor of Hever. He said that “While the futures of a number of UK Army bases around the world were clarified within the strategic defense and security review, the future of the British Army training support unit (BATSUB) was not specifically mentioned. We can confirm that the Ministry of Defense intends to retain BATSUB within Price Barracks and that BATSUB will continue to support training in Belize. Like much of the remainder of the Army, however, BATSUB will be subject to a number of changes over the next few years. This will be done in full consultation with the Belizean authorities.” All be told, the British troop’s presence may be safe for now, but the long term prognosis is uncertain. Aside from Belize the British forces are also training in Brunei, Kenya and Canada. British troops also have a huge presence in Afghanistan.