The British army is not ready for a full scale war with Russia, according to the country’s top military official, an admission that causes intense concern at a time when relations between the United Kingdom and Russia are at their worst point in decades.
This admission by the top military commander is revealing: at the very moment when the political elite is talking about war with Russia, the military appears more realistic.
Admission of weakness
In a recent testimony before a parliamentary defense committee, the Chief of the Defense General Staff, Richard Knighton, stated that due to serious fiscal shortfalls, the British armed forces are not in a position to respond to a generalized war with Russia.
«We are not as ready as we should be for the kind of full scale conflict we may face», he said characteristically before the committee.
Knighton pointed out that the United Kingdom has “reaped the peace dividend” over the past 30 years after the end of the Cold War, stressing that deterrence of major adversaries is achieved only when a country is ready “to fight and to win”.
According to him, the armed forces are facing a fiscal deficit of many billions, which necessitates painful decisions in order to remain within spending limits.
The Brexit factor
Withdrawal from the European Union after Brexit caused serious shocks to the economy of the United Kingdom.
Pressure on state budgets led successive governments to cut defense spending in order to cover other social needs.
According to a report published in December, the United Kingdom will need to spend more than 1,7 trillion dollars by 2040 on armaments and military infrastructure in order to meet the new ambitious NATO targets.
These targets were promoted after pressure from Donald Trump for defense spending at 5% of GDP.
However, the current Labour government does not appear willing to reach this level immediately. Defense spending for 2025/26 is estimated at approximately 84 billion dollars, rising to 99 billion by 2028/29.
Some want war
These statements by the head of the British General Staff stand in complete contrast to the “fiery” speeches of the political elite of Albion, who are more or less ready to declare war on Russia.
For example, MP Mike Martin stated that there is a significant possibility that war with Russia could break out and that, therefore, preparations are required:
«It is obvious that if we become involved in a full war with Russia, we will conscript the population into the army, there is no doubt about that», Martin admitted.
Indeed, earlier this week the tabloid newspaper The Mirror published an incredibly alarmist article, which more or less analyzes the duties of the population under a regime of general mobilization.
According to the newspaper’s extremely Russophobic rant, Vladimir Putin is expected soon to start World War III and attack the West and NATO.
Of course, this is not the first time that British citizens have been called upon to prepare “for the scale of war that our grandparents experienced” in the previous century, as war hysteria remains strong in the country.
However, the distinguishing difference of The Mirror article is that it also focuses on the duties of women in the event of mobilization.
As characteristically emphasized in the text: «Although such a scenario may seem like a relic of the past, the likelihood of a large scale conflict appears frighteningly real».
«If conscription were reintroduced, certain professions would likely be exempt, but in general everyone would be encouraged to contribute», the newspaper states.
The United Kingdom has never conscripted women into combat roles, however recent polls show that public opinion believes this should change in the event of World War III.
The Mirror even cites a YouGov poll, which showed that 72% would support the conscription of women and men.
No soldier in Ukraine
However, the realist Knighton appears more grounded in reality.
Characteristic are his statements regarding the deployment of troops to Ukraine, in which he more or less admitted that Britain is afraid to send soldiers.
Knighton stressed that British troops will not be deployed in Ukraine after a peace agreement, unless security conditions are met.
This development is not unrelated to recent Russian statements, as, according to the Permanent Representative of Russia to the Organization for Security and Co operation in Europe (OSCE), Dmitry Polyansky, Western countries that wish to send troops to Ukraine know very well that in such a case their soldiers will become legitimate targets of the Russian Armed Forces.
«They know very well that we have warned them that this is unacceptable to us. They know very well that the presence of NATO forces and Western troops in Ukraine will not be accepted by us.
And we have repeatedly said at various levels that these forces will become legitimate targets for our armed forces», Polyansky stated.
Division between political and military leadership
The example of Britain is revealing of the subterranean clashes and processes taking place within Western elites.
At a time when politicians desperately desire a total war with Russia, military leaders are restrained, as they know the objective capabilities of Western armies.
No Western army can defeat the Russian one, which has acquired immense experience from the four year war in Ukraine.
Above all, military leaders know that a war with Russia would inevitably end in nuclear holocaust, since a nuclear power cannot be defeated.
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