The U.K. is prepared to send its soldiers to fight Russia if it invades a NATO country on the alliance's eastern flank, Rob Magowan, the deputy chief of the British defense staff, said on Nov. 21, Politico reported.
Concerns over rising Russian aggression are growing in Europe, fueled by Moscow's advances in eastern Ukraine.
Uncertainty about Europe’s readiness to defend itself has been compounded by Republican Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election. During his campaign, Trump repeatedly stated that the U.S. might not support allies that fail to meet NATO defense spending commitments.
When asked how many British brigades could be deployed to NATO's eastern flank in the event of significant Russian escalation, Magowan assured lawmakers that the U.K. would respond immediately if called upon.
"I don't think anybody in this room should be under any illusion that if the Russians invaded Eastern Europe tonight, then we would meet them in that fight," Magowan told the House of Commons defense committee.
Magowan noted that the British Armed Forces possess "a range of operational risks and operational strengths."
His comments follow the U.K. Defense Ministry's announcement on Nov. 21 that the British Army had completed live-fire testing of its Archer mobile howitzer, a rapidly deployable artillery system. The tests were conducted during a 12-day NATO exercise in Finland.
Despite this, the British government has expressed concern over the state of its military, with the British Army now at its smallest size since the 1700s, Politico reported.
In an interview last month, U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey said the condition of the armed forces was "far worse than we thought" when his Labor Party took office this summer. The government is currently conducting a Strategic Defense Review, according to the outlet.
Oleg Sukhov
