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What is the British Defence Investment Plan?

The UK will announce its long-delayed Defence Investment Plan on Tuesday, laying out how it plans to spend a growing military budget in the coming years.

Here are some measures that have already been announced prior to the publication of the plan:

-?Britain announced that its Royal Navy will become a?Hybrid Navy? combining autonomous vessels, AI and warships with aircraft.

This includes unmanned vessels with specialties such as missile platforms, reconnaissance stations and submarine hunting.

The government will invest at least in six "Common Combat Vessels", which will serve as the control hubs of unmanned systems. These vessels will be in service by the 2030s.

New high-speed vessels for Royal Marine Commandos.

Invest in "expensive, expendable autonomous systems and loitering weapons"

- A program to develop unmanned ground vehicles.

By 2030, up to 24 autonomously armed drones will be deployed alongside Apache helicopters.

Up to 24 drones will replace the existing unmanned surveillance aircraft 'Watchkeeper.

Air Force

(Reporting by William James, Editing by William Maclean) (Reporting and Editing by William Maclean, William James)

(source: Reuters)