As former Nato chief warns about defence spending, how much has the military shrunk?

As former Nato chief warns about defence spending, how much has the military shrunk?1 hour agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleBen Chu,Anthony ReubenandThomas Spencer,BBC VerifyGettyLord Robertson, who led the government's recent Strategic Defence Review (SDR), is accusing it of putting the UK's security "in peril" and being unwilling to make the necessary investment.The former Labour defence secretary and Nato secretary general is warning: "We cannot defend Britain with an ever-expanding welfare budget."BBC Verify has been looking at the current size of the UK military.What has happened to the size of the armed forces?In 1990 - at the end of the Cold War - the army had 153,000 regular soldiers in its ranks, this is now down to 73,790.The 2025 SDR recommended that the British Army's regular force should not drop below 73,000.In its latest update, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed the number of people applying to enlist in the regular army had fallen by around 40% in 2025 compared to 2024.Since 1990, the number of reservists has fallen from 76,000 to 25,770. In 1990, the Royal Navy had 48 major combat ships (13 destroyers, 35 frigates).That has dropped to 11 frigates and 6 destroyers.There has been criticism of the Navy's readiness after it took weeks to deploy a single ship - HMS Dragon - to the Gulf to help protect an Royal Air Force (RAF) base in Cyprus.In 1990, the RAF had over 300 combat jets.Now, with 137 Eurofighter Typhoons and at least 37 Joint Strike Fighter F-35 Lightning II in service, it has far fewer, though they are technically superior.Uncrewed aircraft systems, also known as drones, now form an element of the UK's military air capabilities. These did not exist in 1990.The threat from drones has been highlighted in the Ukraine conflict where they now kill more people than traditional artillery. Analysts say the UK needs to invest considerably more in this military technology.Former Nato chief warns...