UK troops in Ukraine 'could lead to nuclear exchange' as British Army 'not ready for war'

The assessments were consistent: The ATACMs weren’t going to change Russia’s nuclear calculus,

said one congressional aide briefed on the intelligence, referring to American missiles with a range of up to 190 miles (306 km).

Angela Stentprofessor at the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University

Russia's hybrid response is a concern,

said Angela Stent, director of Eurasian, Russian and East European studies at Georgetown University, referring to Russia’s sabotage in Europe

We're seeing that with the growing number of sabotage acts, and Europe has seen that with energy supply."

He added

I would strongly advise the government not to get involved in any such force

In an interview on Radio 4’s The World At One, he said

Discussions are underway between the UK and France regarding defence cooperation, particularly with the aim of creating a core of allies in Europe, focused on Ukraine and broader European security."

A British military source said

Several officials even suggested that Mr. Biden could return nuclear weapons to Ukraine that were taken from it after the fall of the Soviet Union. That would be an instant and enormous deterrent. But such a step would be complicated and have serious implications,

the newspaper wrote

Dmitry Peskovkremlin spokesman

These are absolutely irresponsible arguments of people who have a poor understanding of reality and who do not feel a shred of responsibility when making such statements. We also note that all of these statements are anonymous."

Asked about the report, Peskov told reporters

Rob Bauerchair of the NATO Military Committee

The quality of those forces has gone down,

said Admiral Rob Bauer, Chair of NATO's Military Committee, highlighting issues with the troops' equipment and training levels

Josep BorrelleU foreign policy chief

We have no choice: it is imperative that we become capable of ensuring our own security. Our well-being and future cannot continue to depend on the mood of US voters in the Midwest every four years,

Borrell stated

Pat McFaddencabinet Office minister

We know from history that appeasing dictators engaged in aggression against their neighbours only encourages them

But Mr McFadden told the London conference

Aided by allies including the UK, Ukraine has had to defend itself from crippling Russian cyber attacks on its electricity grid, its airports, and other critical national infrastructure

He added

In a few days, I and the UK's senior national security officials will be sitting down with British businesses to discuss how they can boost their own security and help defend the nation from actors with malign intent – particularly from Russia

He said

At the moment, the Russians are not the same threat as in February 2022, so we have a bit of time to prepare ourselves,

he said, adding

Christopher G. Cavoligeneral

The Russian armed forces are learning, they are improving, they are applying the experience gained at war,

Cavoli said

If we can make sure that all crucial services and goods can be delivered no matter what, then that is a key part of our deterrence,

Bauer said

Assuming that you don't decisively defeat the Russians in the opening phase of the war, ... you're going to burn through all your ATACMS and HIMARS missiles and artillery ammunition."

Barros said

You can't exclusively have a relatively small and limited number of highly specialized systems at the expense of not having, at mass, the regular workhorse stuff,

Barros said

The American military wants to go out and win fast, and our modern image of the preferred kind of war is sort of Operation Desert Storm,

Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow and the director of research in the foreign policy program at the Brookings Institution, told BI

That's why a country like Russia, with a pretty mediocre GDP, can actually be doing better than we are in some of these areas just because they've prioritized them,

he said