British public should be ready to fight Putin, UK army chief says

People in Britain should be ready to serve in the military in the event of a war with Russia, the head of the British army has warned.

General Patrick Sanders on Wednesday called on the British authorities to “mobilize the nation” to prepare for a war with Russia, in a speech at the International Armoured Vehicles exhibition in London.

Although he does not support conscription, Sanders stressed the need for a “shift” in the minds of the British public to be mentally ready for a military conflict with Russia.

And he called for Britain to train a “citizen army” ready for a land war — as he questioned the size of the country’s army and urged its modernization.

“Within the next three years, it must be credible to talk of a British Army of 120,000, folding in our reserve and strategic reserve. But this is not enough,” he said.

“We will not be immune and as the pre-war generation we must similarly prepare — and that is a whole-of-nation undertaking,” he said. “Ukraine brutally illustrates that regular armies start wars; citizen armies win them.”

Sanders’ speech got short shrift from No.10 Downing Street, with a spokesperson for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak saying talk of “hypothetical scenarios” regarding future conflicts was “not helpful.” The governing Conservatives have faced discontent in their own ranks for a series of cuts to troop numbers.

But the U.K. military chief echoed similar calls from other Western military leaders and top defense officials, who have warned about the risk of a major war between Moscow and NATO.

Following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s government has upped its warmongering rhetoric against neighboring countries, including the Baltics — which are members of the NATO military alliance — and Moldova.

Last week, Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said a Russian attack on the NATO military alliance was “possible” in “five to eight years.”

Dutch Admiral Rob Bauer, a top NATO official, had earlier said the military bloc faced “the most dangerous world in decades” and called for a “warfighting transformation of NATO.”

The Kremlin’s ever-more-threatening stance has prompted European countries to boost defense spending.

Poland is spending more than 4 percent of GDP on defense this year, while Germany last year revamped its military and strategic doctrine for the first time since 2011, aiming to turn the Bundeswehr into a war-capable army.

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