BRITONS could face a call-up if the UK goes to war with Russia because “the army is too small”, the army chief has warned.
General Sir Patrick Sanders, the Chief of the General Staff, stressed the need for ministers to “mobilize the nation” in a speech today, amid the threat of World War Three.
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General Sir Patrick Sanders is the outgoing Chief of the General Staff – the head of the British ArmyCredit: Rex Features
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He wants the British to be ready to defend the country in the event of World War IIICredit: Getty
With Britain’s military reduced to its smallest size for centuries, General Sir Patrick believes there should be a “change” in the mindset of the public who should be prepared to defend the UK against foreign adversaries.
The army chief wouldn’t support conscription, it’s understood, but he believes Britons should change their mindset to “think more like troops” and be ready for the call if NATO goes to war with Vladimir Putin.
It comes just days after the head of NATO warned that Britons could face conscription as the threat of all-out war with Russia looms.
The head of NATO’s military committee, Dutch Admiral Rob Bauer, called on the West to “prepare for an era of war”, adding that NATO “needs a transformation of warfare”.
During a key summit of NATO defense chiefs in Brussels, Bauer said: “We need to be more prepared across the spectrum.
“You have to have a system to find more people if there’s a war, whether it’s war or not. Then you’re talking about mobilization, reservists or conscription.
“We have to understand that it is not a given that we are at peace. And that’s why we [Nato forces] they are preparing for a conflict with Russia.”
General Sir Patrick made his plea to ordinary Britons at the International Armored Vehicle Conference in Twickenham today.
He said: “Our friends in Eastern and Northern Europe, who feel more acutely the proximity of the Russian threat, are already acting prudently, laying the groundwork for national mobilization.
“We will not remain immune and as the pre-war generation we must prepare similarly – and this is an undertaking of the entire country.
“Ukraine brutally illustrates how regular armies start wars; citizen armies win in them.
“Our predecessors failed to see the implications of the so-called July Crisis of 1914 and stumbled into the most terrible of all wars. We cannot afford to make the same mistake today.”
The introduction of conscription, if it were to happen, would be the first time in more than 60 years that Britons had to fight.
Compulsory military service was introduced during the First World War after the government passed the Military Service Act in 1916.
Tobias Ellwood told Sky News that the world had a “1939 feel” and that Britain was not equipped to deal with “what’s coming over the horizon”.
He added: “We have to listen and listen carefully, we were too complacent.”
General Sir Patrick, who will step down as Chief of the General Staff in six months, previously used the speech to warn that Britain was facing its “1937 moment”. because of the war in Ukraine.
Ukraine brutally illustrates how regular armies start wars – citizen armies win them.”
General Sir Patrick
He argued that Britain must be prepared to “fight and win” to deter the threat from Russia.
The army chief said: “This is our moment from 1937. We are not at war, but we must act quickly so that we are not drawn into war because of the failure to contain territorial expansion.”
It comes as the prospect of World War III continues to rise with ongoing conflicts around the world.
The Middle East has become a powder keg agitated by Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas, attacks by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, and recent clashes and strikes between Iran and Pakistan.
NATO recently announced its biggest call-up in decades as 90,000 troops prepare to begin World War III exercises.
Among that number will be 20,000 British troops as the alliance plans to test allies on their ability to engage in a conflict with an adversary as capable as Russia.
There are fears that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine could lead to Russian troops going beyond Ukraine’s borders to launch attacks on Europe, forcing NATO to join the war.
More than 10,000 civilians have been killed and nearly 20,000 injured since the Russian invasion in February 2022, the UN said.
General Sir Patrick’s call to the British
Our friends in Eastern and Northern Europe, who feel more acutely the proximity of the Russian threat, are already acting prudently, laying the foundations for national mobilization.
As the chairman of the NATO Military Committee warned last week, and as the Swedish government has done, preparing Sweden for NATO entry, taking preparatory steps to enable our societies to be put on a war footing when necessary, is now not only desirable, but also key.
We will not remain immune and as the pre-war generation we must prepare similarly – and this is an undertaking of the entire country. Ukraine brutally illustrates how regular armies start wars; citizen armies defeat them.
But we’ve been here before, and labor alone does not create capability.
Over the last 30 years, the army has been cut in half; in the last 12 years we have absorbed a reduction of 28 percent.
Our predecessors failed to see the implications of the so-called July crisis of 1914 and stumbled into the most terrible of all wars. We cannot afford to make the same mistake today.
When was the last time the UK had conscription?
- On the day Britain declared war on Germany, September 3, 1939, Parliament immediately passed a new recruitment rule.
- The National Service (Armed Forces) Act imposed conscription on all men between the ages of 18 and 41 who had to register for service.
- The medically unfit were exempted, as were others in key industries and occupations such as baking, agriculture, medicine and engineering.
- Conscription greatly helped increase the number of men on active duty during the first year of World War II.
- After the end of the Second World War, a new Law on National Service was passed, according to which all young men between the ages of 17 and 21 had to serve in the armed forces for 18 months.
- They would also have to remain on the reserve list for several years.
- National service then lasted until the last soldiers were demobilized in 1963.
- Conscientious objectors could refuse, but would face a court where they would be expected to justify their opposition to accession.
NATO is mobilizing around 90,000 troops for war games aimed at sending a message to Russia that it is not considering attacks on any member country.
Steadfast Defender will begin this week and run until the end of May, involving troops from all 31 NATO member states plus membership candidate Sweden.
The supreme commander of NATO’s allied forces in Europe, American General Christopher Cavoli, told journalists in Brussels the revolutionary news after a two-day meeting of the heads of the national defense forces.
“The alliance will demonstrate its ability to strengthen the Euro-Atlantic area with the transatlantic movement of forces from North America,” Cavoli said.
The war games are intended as a new demonstration of NATO’s strength and its commitment to the defense of all allied nations against attack.
The UK continues to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia, however, with ministers announcing a further £2.5 billion aid package.
But joint US military strikes against Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have also raised concerns about all-out warfare.
Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron told Sky News it was “hard to imagine a time when there was so much danger and uncertainty”.
Germany will also send 12,000 troops to the Steadfast Defender, according to national newspaper Bild, along with 3,000 vehicles and 30 aircraft.
Citing the German news agency, Bild said the exercise would simulate a Russian attack on NATO territory, a scenario that would trigger Article 5.
The article states that if any NATO country is attacked, all other NATO countries will mobilize to defend it.
Meanwhile, Sweden, which is set to join NATO later this year, has also warned its citizens that it could soon be fighting an all-out war.
The country’s defense minister, Carl-Oskar Bohlin, recently told citizens: “The world is facing a security outlook with greater risks than at any time since the end of World War II.
“Are you a private citizen? Have you thought about whether you have time to join a voluntary veterans’ organization? If not, get started!”
The largest NATO exercise since the Cold War took place in 2018 when 51,000 troops participated in ‘Trident Juncture 2018’ in Norway.
Last week, a leaked military report revealed what could be Vladimir Putin’s step-by-step plan to bring the West to the brink of World War Three – and it starts in a matter of weeks.
The secret documents detail the despot’s possible “road to conflict” which culminates in the summer of 2025 on “X-day” when half a million NATO and Russian troops will face each other.
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20,000 British troops to be deployed in biggest NATO call-up in decades Credit: The Times
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Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued several threats to the West since invading UkraineCredit: Getty
Who was the last soldier?
A review of Britain’s defense resources in 1957 meant that large armies were now considered less effective compared to modern weapons.
From 1957 national service was drastically reduced until the final admission of men in 1960.
On May 16, 1963, Richard Vaughan became the last soldier to be formally demobilized.
Richard Vaughan was 22 when he was called up for national service, after deferring to qualify as a chartered accountant.
He was assigned to the British Army of the Rhine (CPO BAOR) in Monchengladbach, Germany.
At that time the Berlin Wall was under construction.
In May 1963, now promoted to lieutenant, he returned home with his squad.
Unusually, he requested demobilization in England and flew back to Gatwick in his uniform, along with other National Servicemen who were already in civilian clothes.
The following day, 16 May 1963, he was officially demobilized at Devizes Barracks in Wiltshire, earning him the title of ‘The Last National Soldier’.
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Source: HIS Education