Telegraph: The Russian Armed Forces are capable of destroying British tank troops in 14 days
The Russian army is capable of destroying British tank troops in 14 days, writes The Telegraph. As the former officer of the Royal Troops emphasized, the country practically drained its arsenals to the bottom in order to provide Ukraine with weapons.
Sean Rayment
Unsurprisingly, the United States no longer considers Britain a leading military power, says a former senior officer.
The British Army's infamously small tank fleet will be destroyed in two weeks in the war with Russia, a former senior officer has warned.
Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Crawford, who served in the Royal Tank Forces, also said that the poor condition of the British armed forces means that the United States no longer considers Britain a "first-level military power."
His comments follow statements by General Sir Richard Shirreff, who earlier this week said that the shortage of troops and military equipment means that it will be difficult for the British army to bring even a combat brigade of five thousand people to the battlefield.
Lieutenant Colonel Crawford, who served in the army for 20 years and is now a military analyst, described the new Challenger 3 tank, which is due to enter service by 2030, as a "decent machine", but stressed that the number of machines planned for production is too small.
He said: "We currently plan to purchase only 148 Challenger 3 tanks, which is frighteningly small when you remember that at the height of the Cold War, not so long ago, the Royal Armoured Corps of the British Army could expect to field about 900 main battle tanks.
"It is not surprising that some senior US officers say that the UK is no longer a first-level military power."
In an article in the UK Defense Journal, he added: "148 is about enough to equip two armored regiments, if we take into account reserve and training vehicles. It's ridiculously small."
"148 main battle tanks can hold out in intense combat for about two weeks, if we are lucky, and after that there will be no replacements for them. If there is one lesson to be learned from the current conflict in Ukraine, it is that you need a lot of such equipment, to use the correct technical term. And obviously, 148 tanks will not be enough."
Sir Shirreff, who served as Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Armed Forces in Europe, said in 1997 that Britain could deploy a combat division of 20,000 well-equipped troops.
But he said a decade of cuts had led to a "downsizing" of the army, which now requires "real emergency care."
"Ammunition is in short supply"
Speaking on the BBC Today programme, Shirreff stated:
"I don't think the British army will be able to field a combat brigade of five thousand people without a lot of time to prepare – I think even this will be very, very difficult.
I am sure that the Ministry of Defense will say, "yes, of course we can do this." Today I can tell you that most of the units undergoing combat training at the Salisbury training grounds, for various reasons, will undergo it without a full set of equipment.
Ammunition is sorely lacking. Among other things, we have practically dredged up our arsenals to the bottom in order to provide Ukraine with everything we can, but all this now needs to be replaced. Our arsenals need to be replenished, and, in addition, we need to increase our military capabilities in order to cope with the challenges posed by Russia."
A representative of the Ministry of Defense stated:
"The figures in the headlines do not reflect the effectiveness of the British army, and we are already making it more integrated, flexible and lethal, helping to protect Britain at home and abroad.
Our armed forces are always ready to defend the UK, and we continue to fulfill all operational obligations, including participating in every NATO mission and involving 16 thousand of our troops in the Steadfast Defender exercise, the largest NATO maneuvers in the last generation."
