FILE - In this Thursday, Oct. 6, 2011 file photo Robert M. Gates greets cadets at West Point, N.Y., Former U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday that Britain’s defense spending cuts could limit its ability to be a full partner with the United States in military operations. Britain’s army will lose 20,000 soldiers by 2020 _ shrinking from 102,000 to 82,000 as part of efforts to meet steep cuts to public spending ordered by Prime Minister David Cameron. Telling BBC radio that he also laments U.S. defense spending cuts, Gates zeroed in on the fact that for the first time since World War I, Britain does not have an operational aircraft carrier. (AP Photo/Lee Ferris, File)