Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the chief of defence staff, said there was a need for "humility" to recognise the limitations and "near-term financial challenges" faced by our armed forces.
But he said Russia, the main adversary of the West, has been hugely damaged by brutal losses in Ukraine and will take a decade or more to rebuild its military strength to the level it had at the time of Vladimir Putin's invasion and rectify the shortcomings exposed.
And he rejected the idea that conscription was needed, as proposed in the Conservative manifesto at the election. Baltic and Nordic nations "are talking about mass resilience and conscription", he said. "That is understandable. They border Russia. The threat is close. Our geography is different."
This story is from the July 24, 2024 edition of The Independent.
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This story is from the July 24, 2024 edition of The Independent.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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