Britain must be prepared to strike back against Russian aggression within minutes, the head of the Army has warned.
General Sir Roly Walker said UK weapons deployed on NATO’s eastern frontier must be ready “to strike and act within 30 minutes” if deterrence measures fail.
Speaking at the annual Land Warfare Conference in London, the Chief of the General Staff said any military response to an aggressor should be delivered immediately, ideally before opposing forces are able to leave their assembly areas.
The former Special Forces officer said: “If deterrence fails…the cost we impose on the aggressor must be felt immediately and preferably before they get out of their assembly areas.”
He also revealed plans to place “much greater numbers of remote and autonomous systems on the eastern flank” during the coming year as NATO seeks to strengthen its deterrence posture.
British troops are already stationed in Estonia as part of NATO’s enhanced forward presence mission.
General Walker said Britain must remain willing to risk the lives of its service personnel in defence of its interests and allies.
He said: “The blunt truth is blood is the hardest and most precious currency we can contribute.”
The Army chief argued that a nation’s military and moral readiness to put troops “on the line” underpins its international influence and credibility, reports The Sun.
He said: “That buys influence, sharpens credibility and ultimately gives weight to shaping how the conflict is fought and how the peace follows.”
His intervention comes as the Ministry of Defence faces a reported £28 billion budget black hole despite ongoing conflicts in Iran and Ukraine.
Earlier this month, former Defence Secretary John Healey and Armed Forces Minister Al Carns resigned amid a dispute over military funding.
The Government’s long-delayed Defence Investment Plan remains unpublished more than a year after it was expected.
General Walker insisted that land power remains central to preventing conflict and maintaining security.
He commands an Army of around 70,000 trained personnel, the smallest British Army in more than 200 years, and is expected to bear the brunt of any future reductions when the Defence Investment Plan is finally unveiled.
Emphasising the continuing importance of ground forces, he said: “It is only land forces that can seize terrain it is only land forces that will hold the ground.
“When the guns fall silent, as they surely will, it is generally the land forces that will remain in abundance to guard what was won.
“When all the others go home it is the land forces that remain, and in many cases in our history it becomes our new home.”
The warning comes as Russian state media figures have escalated their rhetoric against Britain following reports that the UK has developed three new long-range missile prototypes for Ukraine.
The systems, which are capable of striking targets more than 300 miles away, have reportedly been tested at the Ministry of Defence’s Hebrides range in Scotland.
British officials are hoping to supply the first of the new missile systems to Kyiv within the next year.
The development has drawn an angry response from Kremlin supporters, including Putin ally and state media figure Margarita Simonyan.
Appearing on Russian television, Simonyan said: “When London blithely declares that we’re currently preparing long-range missiles to strike Moscow – well, listen, there are some interesting spires there.
“It would be interesting to see those spires go up in flames.
“That would probably be quite a picturesque and beautiful sight.”
She also suggested the standoff could eventually end with Russia issuing Britain an “ultimatum”.
Simonyan said: “They are participants in this war.
“I urge you not to be upset that this has not been done so far.”
Her remarks followed a wave of Ukrainian strikes over the weekend targeting oil depots and fuel facilities used to support Russian military operations.
A major fire broke out at Kerch port in Russian-occupied Crimea, sending a 40-mile plume of black smoke into the sky.
According to the region’s Russian-installed governor, five people were killed and 28 others were wounded in the attacks.
Ukraine has stepped up its drone campaign against targets in Russia as Kyiv seeks to increase pressure on Vladimir Putin and push Moscow towards peace negotiations.