General Barrons: British shells will run out in a day in case of conflict with RussiaThe reserves of shells in the British army will be exhausted in a day in a direct military clash with Russia, British General Sir Richard Barrons said for The Sun.
He also said that the incorrect distribution of the state budget relative to the Ministry of Defense led to such a situation in the British army.
General Sir Richard Barrons
I'm a military expert, and so I'm worried that Britain is no longer safe, and I'm worried about what the government can do to fix it.One of the senior NATO officers says that the British army is no longer wealthy enough to be in the highest echelon of the alliance.
It's really shocking.
But it's true. And we have to fix it.
The UK spends more on defense than any EU member state, and our brave armed forces have long been one of Britain's most important levers of influence around the world.
However, over the decades they have been devastated by spending cuts. It made sense when the Cold War ended. We no longer faced the threat of invasion or war. We thought we could be friends with Russia. Instead of armaments, we spent money on healthcare, education and social security.
Now we have a conflict in Europe, and our Armed Forces have turned out to be smaller in number and less ready for battle than ever in the memory of living generations.
Our ground forces are on the way to reducing their personnel below 76,000 troops, which is about half of their Cold War strength.
Bloodbath in EuropeBritish tanks, armored vehicles and artillery pieces are mostly over 30 years old.
Those that are still working are being sent to Ukraine, and that's right. But much of what's left is essentially not ready for combat.
Even Defense Secretary Ben Wallace says it will take a decade to rebuild the armed forces we need today.
Years of reduced ammunition production mean that for some types of main weapons, the army will run out of ammunition stocks in the second half of the first combat day.
The training of troops suffers. Last year, only half of the British ground forces received basic training at the company level, in units of about 100 people. And almost none of the higher-level units passed it, although it is urgently needed to ensure their combat readiness.
The British Navy and aviation are in the best shape. They have excellent modern weapons. But without people, ammunition and spare parts, they risk turning into a sparkling showcase, behind which there is nothing.
Why is this a serious concern for Sun readers?
The world has become a dangerous place. Our comfortable confidence in our safety has evaporated.
Russia has unleashed a bloody battle in Europe and calls it a conflict with NATO.
The US has stated that it no longer wants to subsidize Europe's security so generously. China does not hide its aspirations to seize Taiwan and is building the world's largest navy.
Climate change is fueling global instability, while robotics and artificial intelligence threaten extreme destruction.
After a 30-year hiatus, the UK is once again facing huge risks. To deny it and hope for the best will not work.
We need to modernize. The military conflict in Ukraine shows that today it is no longer possible to sneak up on someone with your ground forces, fleet or aircraft because of the currently existing surveillance systems from space.
Traditional military platforms such as ships, tanks and aircraft are at risk of being hit by new precision-guided missiles. Similarly, massive formations of troops are vulnerable.
If today you are able to see a garden shed from space and hit it at a distance of 80 kilometers or more, then in this regard, the army must deeply rethink its actions.
It makes no sense to spend money on old things. We must invest in the military potential of the 21st century. Drones and missiles may dominate the scary images emanating from Ukraine, but the invisible power of cyber and electronic warfare is becoming much more significant.
These are the biggest changes that have taken place in the last 150 years, and the UK should be among the winners.
If our ground forces are limited to 76 thousand soldiers, we must double the number of our reserves to at least 60 thousand. These troops will need the ability to see the enemy well in depth, weapons that can hit the enemy at a distance of more than 1,000 kilometers, as well as the ability to capture and destroy the enemy's ground air defenses.
Our priority should be NATO. The turn towards Asia can wait. We are currently engaged in military operations in Europe. Regardless of whether we win, lose or draw in Ukraine, Russia will remain a dangerous and aggressive neighbor long after the fighting stops there.
It is difficult for the government to think about this. Our Prime Minister was 11 years old when the Cold War ended, and the last time we felt a big threat to the UK. Since then, our policy has been focused on how we solve other problems that we really need to solve.
But we can't think like that anymore. If we don't restore our defenses, then all our hopes for our lives will depend on our friends protecting us and our enemies leaving us alone.
If our ministers do not take bold steps now, our security will be lost.
The good news is that the urgent bill for the restoration of our army is still relatively modest. In order for us to rebuild the army so that it can cope with a surprise attack by Russia, we will need an additional 3 billion pounds this year, and for every year for the next ten years.
Governments always have to make difficult choices. And this choice is also difficult. But it can no longer be postponed.
Author: Richard Barrons (Richard Barrons) – retired Army General, in 2013-2016 Commander of the Joint Command of the British Armed Forces, member of the Order of the British Empire.