War with Russia is inevitable unless the UK replenishes its stockpiles of lethal weapons and rapidly improves its defences, Britain’s former army chief has warned.
General Sir Patrick Sanders, who resigned in June, said that if Britain failed to boost supplies after giving away arms to Ukraine, it could go to war within five years.
Expressing his concerns just weeks after leaving the top job, Sir Patrick said: “If we don’t replenish our reserves, which are very, very low at the moment, and recapitalise, we risk conflict becoming inevitable.”
This comes after his successor, General Sir Roland Walker, warned that Britain needed to be able to fight a major war within three years, anticipating that Moscow could seek revenge against the West for supporting Ukraine.
Sir Patrick also warned that Britain must replenish its missile supplies, describing the country’s ability to defend itself in the “unlikely” event of an air attack as “weak”.
Britain’s ability to defend itself in the “unlikely” event of an air attack is “weak”, Sir Patrick warned. Pictured: A Russian Yars missile being launched in October 2022
General Sir Patrick Sanders, who resigned as Chief of the Army Staff in June
Sir Patrick warned last year that Britain’s donation of 14 Challenger 2 tanks (pictured) to kyiv had left “a gap in our arsenal”.
Sir Patrick, who was a vocal critic of troop cuts during his tenure as army chief, said more troops were needed as well as weapons.
Speaking on the Money Maze podcast this week, he said: “We need to make sure we can operate at scale.
‘That means replenishing our reserves, but it also means that the military, which is historically very small at the moment – in an era when we are returning to great power conflict – is able to grow rapidly.
He warned that doing so sufficiently “would take us five to ten years.”
As well as the need to deter Russia, Sir Patrick warned that Britain would have to deal with emerging threats elsewhere over the next ten years.
“There is a risk of alignment, that the end of the war in Ukraine, Russian recapitalisation and China saying the PLA (People’s Liberation Army) should be ready to invade Taiwan in 2027 will create an acute danger point around 2028,” he said.
“The best way to avoid this is to make sure that we are prepared to fight and that we are able to deter and prevent these conflicts from occurring in this decade.”
Since Vladimir Putin’s forces launched their invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the UK has pledged £7.6bn in military assistance.
Ukrainian soldiers take part in a casualty simulation training exercise operated by the British armed forces, as part of the Interflex programme, in southern England, August 22, 2024.
The UK government is expected to increase defence spending to 2.5 per cent of national income by 2030, which would mean tens of billions of pounds in additional funding, in an effort to strengthen the military at a time of growing global threats.
Sir Patrick warned last year that Britain’s donation of 14 Challenger 2 tanks to kyiv had left “a gap in our arsenal”, making the armed forces “temporarily weaker”.
But he has remained steadfast in his support for kyiv, saying this week that the current focus should be on “making sure Ukraine can win.”
“It’s not just about surviving on the battlefield, which is probably all we’ve been doing right now,” the 58-year-old said.
“It is about posing unacceptable threats to Russia, which makes Russia and Putin reconsider their position.”
Ukrainian President Zelensky this week accused Britain of “slowing down” support for Ukraine while demanding the removal of “barriers” in his country’s fight against Russia.
Britain has provided long-range Storm Shadow missiles (pictured)
Zelensky has overseen a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk region in recent weeks, which he says is aimed at creating a buffer zone to prevent further cross-border attacks by Moscow.
Britain has given the green light for weapons donated by the UK to be used on Russian soil as part of Ukraine’s self-defence.
The only exception is Storm Shadow missiles, which remain off-limits beyond Ukraine’s borders, but Zelensky said “long-range capabilities” were “vital.”
His team has said that if Britain were to relax restrictions on the use of these weapons, it could “turn the tide of the war”.