The state of the UK Armed Forces, due to decades of cuts, is "much worse. worse than we thought”, British Defense Minister John Healy said, Sky News reported.
He said this amid a warning by the former Ukrainian army chief that Britain and other democracies must "wake up” and consider how to protect themselves from another world war – a level of preparedness that will require all of society, not just the military, to be prepared, BTA summarized.
General Valery Zaluzhny, who this month took over as Ukraine's ambassador to London, told a conference in London: "Evil is here and it has come to kill.
The two spoke separately at the annual British Army Land Warfare Conference, organized by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) think tank.
Healey hit out at the wide-ranging defense review the government launched last week, promising to usher in a "new era" for the armed forces.
Noting that "these are really serious times” With "rapidly growing global threats”, Britain's defense secretary said he wanted to avoid the age-old tactics of the Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force fighting each other over limited funds to support pet projects.
"We have to be fit to fight, not fight each other,” said Healey.
"I really want to see the old rivalries put behind us.“
He continued: "We know that all three branches of the military face very serious challenges: depleted forces, lost procurement, low morale, a recruitment and retention crisis, and veterans who do not have access to the services they deserve. “
Healey then stressed that after two weeks in government, "we now see that these problems are much worse than we thought.