Army chief says we should be prepared for warfare in three years as a result of 3-nation menace
The UK has just three years to beef up its army to face off a WW3-level threat from an “axis of upheaval” including big players like Russia and China, according to top military brass.
The new head of the general staff, General Sir Roly Walker, has dropped a bombshell warning that there’s “just enough time” left to whip the army into shape to scare off any hostile nations itching for a scrap with the West.
He’s eyeballing countries like Russia, China, and Iran as the main bad actors.
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Sir Roly reckons it doesn’t even matter how the Ukraine invasion ends because Russia’s going to come out swinging for revenge against the UK for the helping hand it loaned Putin’s enemies.
![Sir Roland 'Roly' Walker is eyeballing countries like Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran as the main bad actors](https://i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk/incoming/article33317353.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/0_Service-Of-Thanksgiving-For-Lord-Boyce.jpg)
(Image: Getty Images)
The former special forces man, who’s no stranger to dodgy spots after his time in Afghanistan, is banging the drum for ramping up the “lethality” of our armed forces.
As per The Times, he’s said the army, with its 72,500 troops, might have to face down this menace with older equipment.
Speaking at the land warfare conference at the Royal United Services Institute, he said: “We have just enough time… to prepare, act, and assure the re-establishment of credible land forces to support a strategy of deterrence.”
While Sir Roly acknowledged that the UK isn’t on an “inexorable path to war,” he stressed the “need is urgent” to enhance the army’s capabilities.
He argued that the UK must “apply all strengths as a free-market democracy against the weaknesses of their rigid, autocratic, command economies,” reports the Mirror.
![The head of the general staff warned that a potential invasion of Taiwan by China could potentially drag the US and UK into a WW3](https://i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk/incoming/article33317352.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/1_hode_times_prod_web_bin_ab1234d0-9ace-423b-9037-fbee72941bcb.jpg)
(Image: Getty)
Sir Roly believes that the UK has until 2027 or 2028 to bolster the army’s capabilities and aims to double its combat readiness.
The top brass man warned that a potential invasion of Taiwan by China could potentially drag the US and Britain into a third world war.
He also cautioned that Russia could re-arm effectively with assistance from China and Iran. He suggested that Vladimir Putin might feel “angry and resentful” by then, which could “detonate” another wave of conflicts.
“When you think they are down they [Russia] will come roaring back to get their vengeance,” he said during the conference. Sir Roly further warned that Russia was not only determined to annex Ukrainian territory but also aimed to dismantle Euro-Atlantic security architecture.
His warnings echo those of General Sir Patrick Sanders, who has been head of the British Army since 2022, and earlier this year stated that the West had not been as close to war since 1945.
He also highlighted that the UK armed forces were both underfunded and overstretched.
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