Britain’s new Army chief has warned that the UK must ready itself for conflict in the next three years as a “very dangerous” Russia looms on the horizon.
General Sir Roly Walker suggested Moscow could seek revenge on the West for helping Ukraine in the ongoing war, and there could be an “axis of upheaval” by 2027 or 2028.
He said: “The point here is when you think they [Russians] are down, they will come roaring back to get their vengeance.”
As the serving Chief of the General Staff – who is just one month into the job – Walker’s words were unexpectedly candid.
He said that although conflict is not inevitable, Britain must be able to “deter or fight a war in the next three years”, claiming Russia, China and Iran could unite against the West.
He said the countries are already building on their relationship by sharing weapons and technologies.
The general also suggested that – regardless of a who wins the Ukraine-Russia war, – Moscow will come out “very, very dangerous” and wanting retribution.
Iran could also become more aggressive over time and China could look to invade Taiwan, meaning the West’s ability to deal with each crisis separately could become “significantly diminished”.
“A problem in one area is likely to trigger a sympathetic detonation in another and therefore it is a global problem looked at from different perspectives around the world,” he told journalists at the Land Warfare Conference.
He urged Britain to double its ability to take out the enemy by 2027, and triple it by 2030, in response to this potential threat.
He claimed this would not need more troops or a greater Budget, but did make it clear there should not be further cuts to the Army.
Walker added: “That way we will have every confidence in being ready and able to fight anyone and win.”
He said Britain currently has a “medium-sized army” suggesting that was, in some ways, an asset as it is “out of date” to evaluate strength from raw troop numbers.
But, the general made it clear that the British Army would lose if it stuck to archaic ideas on warfare rather than modernising, saying: “We are not on an inexorable path to war but what we do have is an absolute urgency to restore credible hard power in order to underwrite deterrence.”
His comments come after the government launched a review of defence last week, which could lead to further cuts.
PM Keir Starmer has promised to take defence spending from just over 2% of national income to 2.5%, but has not laid out a timeline to do so.