How long could the UK last in war with Russia? | UK News

Britain is dangerously unprepared to defend itself from onslaught in the event of an all-out war with Russia, a damning government report has found.

General Nick Carter, a former army officer and ex-Chief of Defence Staff, told The Sun that armed forces would likely ‘exhaust their chief capabilities after the first couple of months of engagement’, commenting on recent findings by the Commons Defence Select Committee.

After a year compiling its assessment of the British Army’s current capacity, the parliamentary group said that for one thing, ammunition supplies are ‘far below the level required to counter with certainty a threat from the Russian army.’

This in addition to the fact more than £2 billion in funding granted to the armed forces last year is also understood to have been spent on patching up shortcomings in the country’s defences, rather than boosting reserve forces. 

It comes as experts warn the nation’s capital would, as things currently stand, also prove woefully underprepared for the realities of a conflict on British soil. 

Existing structures that might provide shelter from air attacks would need to be significantly reinforced, as well as rapidly establishing protocols for evacuation, rationing and use of technology, among other things. 

It is presently also unknown what measures would be required to bolster military capacity in the country, with talk from senior military officials that the UK would likely need to introduce some form of conscription.

Technically, there’s every expectation this would apply equally to men and women.

The government has reassured the public that any form of mandatory military service is currently off the table, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak describing any discussion of ‘hypothetical scenarios’ as ‘not helpful.’

Rules and regulations have been known to change in times of emergency, however.

There are certain avenues pacifists might be able to use to avoid the draft, though the law surrounding ‘conscientious objection’ remains contentious.

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