Warning for military call ups to return if UK goes to war with Russia ridiculed by Brits

Britain should “train and equip” a “citizen army” to ready the country for a potential land war, the head of the Army has said which has prompted a wave of defiance and mockery of social media.

But General Sir Patrick Sanders, the outgoing Chief of the General Staff (CGS), said even that would be “not enough” as he pointed to allies in eastern and northern Europe “laying the foundations for national mobilisation”.

In a speech on Wednesday, the military top brass said increasing Army numbers in preparation for a potential conflict would need to be a “whole-of-nation undertaking”.

The comments, first reported by the Daily Telegraph, are being read as a warning that British men and women should be ready for a call-up to the armed forces if Nato goes to war with Russia.

In his speech on Wednesday, Sir Patrick said Britain could not rely on its navy and air power, arguing “we must be able to credibly fight and win wars on land”.

He said: “We need an Army designed to expand rapidly to enable the first echelon, resource the second echelon and train and equip the citizen army that must follow.

“Within the next three years, it must be credible to talk of a British Army of 120,000, folding in our reserve and strategic reserve. But this is not enough.

“Our friends in eastern and northern Europe, who feel the proximity of the Russian threat more acutely, are already acting prudently, laying the foundations for national mobilisation.

“As the chairman of the Nato military committee warned just last week, and as the Swedish government has done, preparing Sweden for entry to Nato, taking preparatory steps to enable placing our societies on a war footing when needed are now not merely desirable but essential.

“We will not be immune and as the pre-war generation we must similarly prepare — and that is a whole-of-nation undertaking.

“Ukraine brutally illustrates that regular armies start wars; citizen armies win them.”

Given that National Service ended in the UK in 1963 it's perhaps no surprise that even the notion of bringing conscription back to the UK has been met with mockery and ridicule.

Sir Patrick has been a vocal critic of cuts to troop numbers and military spending.

He will be replaced as CGS in June by General Sir Roly Walker, an announcement that followed reports he was being forced out in response to his outspoken comments.

Additional reporting from PA.

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