News & Comment

General Sir Patrick Sanders, the head of the British Army, has said it is “dangerous” to assume that Ukraine is a “limited conflict”. Speaking to the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) land warfare conference in London, Sir Patrick said: "Historically Russia often starts wars badly. Because Russia wages war at the strategic and not the tactical level its depth and resilience means it can suffer any number of campaigns, battles and engagements lost and yet regenerate and still ultimately prevail. “While Russia’s conventional capability will be reduced for a time at least, Putin’s declared intent to restore the lands of historic Russia makes any respite temporary and the threat will become even more acute. “We don’t know how the war in Ukraine will end but in most scenarios Russia will be an even greater threat to European security after Ukraine than it was before. “The Russian invasion has reminded us of that time-honoured maxim that if you want to avert conflict you had better be prepared to fight.”

... the new head of the army will strike a similarly defiant tone in his first speech today. Declaring 2022 to be Britain’s “1937 moment”, Sir Patrick Sanders will tell the Royal United Services Institute that British troops must be ready to “fight and win” on the streets and in the cities of Europe. Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, will tell the same event that the time has come for a 20 per cent increase in defence spending.

[Defence Secretary Ben Wallace] will tell a conference organised by the Royal United Services Institute think tank that, in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, governments must be prepared to invest more to keep people safe.