The British armed forces have been severely impacted by cuts and a lack of investment, to the point where it would take between five and 10 years' notice from Putin to repel a Russian

invasion, according to a top military chief. General Sir Richard Barrons, former commander of the UK's Joint Forces Command, has highlighted the decline of Britain's military capabilities, stating that it would struggle to defend the nation without urgent investment. During the last Cold War, the nation was ready to go to war within four hours, but this capability has been destroyed over decades of decline and savage cuts.

In a scathing review of the "sorry" state of British forces, Sir Richard accused Downing Street of "throwing" the issue of defence spending "down the road to another General Election", with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt ignoring pleas to ramp up military spending by an extra £11 billion over two years. He also warned that Russia, though currently embroiled in its war in Ukraine, could soon rearm and become an even more deadly threat to the West.

The difference in sheer mass of forces between the UK and Russia is stark. Britain has approximately 137,000 military personnel, 227 tanks, and 5,015 armoured vehicles, while the Russians have around 1,350,000 troops, 12,420 tanks, and more than 30,000 armoured vehicles, along with 605 navy vessels compared to the UK's 70.

Sir Richard believes that Britain would need five to 10 years' notice of a Russian surprise attack to manage to deal with it, which is not a "cool" place to be. He stated, "It's deeply disappointing." During the Cold War, the Army was always ready to fight within four hours, but this capability was dismantled when the Cold War ended and there was no sense of existential risk to the UK.

Last week, the government announced plans to spend an extra £5 billion on defence over the next two years, which is a fraction of the £8 billion to £11 billion reportedly wanted by Defence Secretary Ben Wallace. Rishi Sunak also pledged to lift defence spending from just over two per cent of national income to 2.5 per cent, but did not give a timeframe for when this would be achieved. The commitment was welcomed by the Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, who said that if the new target was reached within ten years, it would equate to an extra £100 billion.

Sir Richard's warnings should be taken seriously, as the UK's military capabilities have been hollowed out to such a degree that it would struggle to defend itself without urgent investment. The UK cannot rely on past capabilities to keep itself safe in the face of present and future threats, and the government must take this warning seriously and invest in the UK's defence capabilities to keep the country and its people safe. Photo by Army/MOD, Wikimedia commons.