A senior Ukrainian military officer has warned that Britain is dangerously unprepared for a major war and could pay a “high price” if Russian President Vladimir Putin expands the conflict in Ukraine to Europe.
Viktor Andrusiv, a major in the Ukrainian armed forces and former presidential adviser, said the UK must urgently learn from Ukraine’s experience before it is too late. His warning comes amid growing concern across NATO that Russia could escalate hostilities if diplomatic efforts fail.
Speaking against the backdrop of renewed calls by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte for Europe to prepare for war “like our grandparents endured,” Andrusiv said the greatest danger lies in disbelief. According to him, many people in Western countries still struggle to accept that large-scale war on European soil is a real possibility.
“The biggest problem is that people don’t believe this can happen,” Andrusiv said. He noted that Ukraine faced a similar mindset before Russia’s full-scale invasion, when the idea of tank columns and missile strikes seemed unthinkable in the 21st century.
Putin has recently warned that Russia is prepared to go to war with Europe if peace talks over Ukraine collapse, raising fears of a direct confrontation with NATO. Such a scenario would automatically draw in the UK under the alliance’s collective defence commitments.
British defence chiefs have already cautioned that the country’s armed forces have been “hollowed out” after decades of reduced military spending following the Cold War. Andrusiv agreed with that assessment, arguing that the UK’s military structure and equipment are outdated.
Posts
