Sir Ben Wallace, who served as Conservative defence secretary for four years has warned that the British Army is not strong enough to serve on operations to defend Ukraine.
Sir Ben warned that the army “would be very stretched” in operating in Ukraine and said that Vladimir Putin will not be “fooled” by Sir Keir Starmer saying the British Army can offer assurances on the ground.
The former defence secretary said the UK could only “sustain” troops on the ground for a short period of time, should there be a ceasefire.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme Sir Ben, said, “It’s possible for a very short period of time. The reality is the three powers that were at that meeting; Germany, France and Britain; the only power actually spending money on defence increases is Germany.
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“Germany has twice now significantly raised its defence budget. The only powers in Europe increasing defence budget properly rather than press releases and folding in other people’s budgets and pretending its defence are Germany, Poland and the Nordic states.”
He warned, “The current Government is about to take a billion pounds out of the Army this year, so I don’t think we can sustain it and actually no one is fooled by it.
“We would be very stretched.
“We have a deployment in Estonia. We need to spend real money now, not in 2029, not in 2030, 2040.
“The OBR itself said that the British Government had not set out a path to 3.5% of GDP by 2035.”
This comes as the UK and Paris signed a historic agreement with Ukraine for a joint declaration for a “multinational force” if there is a peace agreement.
“President Putin himself won’t be put off by this and, let’s remember, it’s all based on if a ceasefire happens,” he said.
“Now there is a lot more detail to be worked out. What would the rules of engagement be? What happens when an unaligned militia from the Donbas, for example, attacks our troops or our positions? Are they Russian or are they Russian supporters?
“I think all of that has a long way to play and we shouldn’t also forget that there is a tie-up to Greenland here.
“Greenland is technically in the Western hemisphere, which according to the Trump doctrine, is and belongs to the United States’ sphere of influence. It also bridges into Europe.
“It has been a long-term goal of Putin to break apart the Atlantic alliance, and that territory itself would become, I believe, in the next six months, very much a token of how Putin is going to further divide us and keep us all weak.”
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