UK must be ready for war in three years, head of British Army warns

    

Britain's Army Must Be Ready to Fight "Axis of Upheaval" by 2027, New Chief Warns

The British Army must be prepared within the next three years to fight a potential war against an "axis of upheaval" comprising Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea, the force's new chief has warned.

General Sir Roly Walker, the new Chief of the General Staff, stressed that conflict is not inevitable, but predicted that Russian President Vladimir Putin will emerge from the invasion of Ukraine "very, very dangerous" and "wanting retribution" against countries like the UK that supported Ukraine, regardless of whether Russia wins or loses.

"The point here is when you think they [the Russians] are down, they will come roaring back to get their vengeance," Walker told a briefing with journalists on the sidelines of an annual army conference.

The general also cautioned about the potential of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, Iran's desire to develop nuclear weapons, and the threat posed by North Korea. He described how these countries are creating a relationship with each other, sharing weapons and technologies, and how this challenge could converge by 2027 to 2028.

"That is why you get to this point by... 2027-2028 this convergence may have reached some sort of mutual singularity and your ability to deal with them in isolation - a specific crisis that can be managed by the rules-based system - I think is significantly diminished," Walker said.

Given these threats, Walker said there was an "urgent need" for the British Army to rebuild its ability to deter future wars with credible fighting power. He warned that the army would lose if they stuck with old ideas about warfare instead of adapting to embrace new technologies that are transforming the battlefield.

"I am saying we are not on an inexorable path to war but what we do have is an absolute urgency to restore credible hard power to underwrite deterrence," he said.

Walker aims to double the army's ability to fight and kill by 2027 and to be able to destroy an enemy force of at least three times their size by the end of the decade. However, he cautioned against any further cuts to the size of the army and its budget.

The new government has launched a review of defense, which may lead to capability cuts unless the Treasury commits to a significant increase in the defense budget. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to lift defense spending to 2.5% of national income, but many defense insiders believe this level of boost is still too small.

Walker said the key is to innovate and adapt, using autonomous weapons, artificial intelligence, and other new technologies to make soldiers more effective killers, as Ukraine's military is doing against Russia.

"We have just enough time… to prepare, act, and assure the re-establishment of credible land forces to support a strategy of deterrence," he said.