Sir Keir Starmer has said that Europe ‘must be ready to fight’ Russia ‘if necessary’ as it faces a growing threat.
Tensions of a ‘World War III’ have been speculated for quite some time now, with things heightening as ‘Russia has proved its appetite for aggression’.
During his speech, the prime minister told the Munich Security Conference this morning (14 February): “Now we feel the solidity of peace, the very ground that we stand on softening under our feet.
“It’s the job of leaders to be ahead of these seismic shapes, yet that is against the grain of history.”
Starmer continued that after getting a peace deal for Ukraine ‘Russia’s rearmament would only accelerate’ and said that ‘we must answer this threat in full’.
Starmer says leaders mustn’t dither as ‘Russia has proved its appetite for aggression’ (Vyacheslav PROKOFYEV / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
“To break the convention of a thousand speeches, we are not at a crossroads. The road ahead is straight and it is clear. We must build our hard power, because that is the currency of the age,” Starmer continued.
“We must be able to deter aggression, and, yes, if necessary, we must be ready to fight.”
Earlier at the conference, as a number of matters were discussed, the European Commission President told the Munich Security Conference: “Europe needs to step up and has to take on its responsibility.”
Ursula von der Leyen said it has had ‘some shock therapy’ from the US and that ‘some lines have been crossed that cannot be uncrossed anymore’.
She added: “An independent Europe is a strong Europe, and a strong Europe makes for a stronger transatlantic alliance.”
Starmer also announced that the UK will deploy its carrier strike group of warships to the Arctic this year.
As the prime minister insisted the UK would honour the Nato commitment to defend its allies if called upon, he assured members it would ‘come to your aid’.
Starmer assured the UK would come the aid of Nato members (Suzanne Plunkett – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
And his deployment of warships to the Arctic comes as Donald Trump insists he wants to take over Greenland – a territory of Denmark.
“I can announce today that the UK will deploy our carrier strike group to the North Atlantic and the High North this year, led by HMS Prince of Wales, operating alongside the US, Canada and other Nato allies in a powerful show of our commitment to Euro-Atlantic security,” Starmer said.
He also said Nato can only be preserved ‘if we change and strengthen the European dimension’ as he added: “Europe hasn’t done enough for its own defence and security for many years, the conflict in Ukraine has flushed that out, shown it to be the reality, and it falls to us as leaders to recognise that, to change and strengthen Europe.”
Featured Image Credit: Stefan Rousseau – WPA Pool/Getty Images
A major in the Ukrainian army has warned that ‘war is closer than we think’ – and he believes that the UK isn’t ready for it.
Former presidential advisor Viktor Andrusiv is among a host of experts who have suggested that the British Army needs bolstering, and fast.
The country currently has 70,000 active troops, which pales in comparison to the size of Vladimir Putin’s armed forces.
Andrusiv said that the UK will ‘pay a higher price’ for being ill-equipped in the possible event of World War 3, while claiming the army’s current tactics are ‘outdated’.
Urging Brits to brace for a modern-day battle, he went on to warn that the reality of a global war is ‘closer than we think’.
Earlier this month, the Russian president stated that his country is ‘ready’ for war with Europe if it is instigated, sparking fears that the continent could soon be engulfed in conflict.
Vladimir Putin has said Russia is ‘ready for war’ if needed (Contributor/Getty Images)
“The biggest problem is that people are not going to believe that this can happen,” Andrusiv told The Sun. “I am sure [the UK] are not prepared. It does not mean that you would lose for sure, but if you are not prepared, you will pay a higher price.”
He called on the UK to learn lessons from the devastation which has unfolded in Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022.
The military man explained that a lot of people in his war-torn home country also thought that the prospect of war was ‘crazy’ – until tanks started rolling in.
“People don’t believe this can actually happen,” Andrusiv continued. “It’s very hard to believe in that, and this is the problem.
“You should be aware of that. This is possible. Drones which attack your homes, missiles which attack your places – you should be aware that this can be a reality.
“The key about preparation is people believe this can be reality.”
He warned that the UK could soon resemble the war-torn streets of Ukraine (Paula Bronstein / Getty Images)
According to Andrusiv, action needs to be taken immediately, as the author warned that roping in untrained civilians at the eleventh hour would be no match for Putin’s forces.
“The things the army knows about wars before this war are outdated,” he went on. “Western doctrines are based on the professional army, but as Putin shows and we show that such a kind of war will involve millions of civilians in the army.
“You cannot command them as professional warriors, so you need to find other approaches to these people because normally in civilian life they are not so strict in discipline.
“So you should also change a lot of things because the war is changing every day. You should follow the innovation.
“You should follow the things which just changed every moment, like the drones.”
Chillingly, he added: “War is closer than we think. Deaths are closer than we think.”
Featured Image Credit: SERGEI ILNITSKY / POOL / AFP via Getty Images
Keir Starmer has said that Russian leader Vladimir Putin must not play games over a potential ceasefire to stop Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It’s over three years since Putin invaded Ukraine in what has become the largest and deadliest conflict in Europe since the Second World War.
A ceasefire deal which would halt the war for 30 days has been proposed by the US and has Ukrainian support, but Putin said that while he ‘absolutely supports’ the idea of a ceasefire he had some conditions he wanted.
Putin spoke about Ukrainian troops that had launched a counter-offensive into Kursk and questioned how Ukraine would use the 30-day ceasefire time.
“How will those 30 days be used? For Ukraine to mobilise? Rearm? Train people? Or none of that? Then a question – how will that be controlled,” Putin asked, also demanding that the price of a 30-day ceasefire included Ukraine abandoning attempts to join NATO and to give up control of parts of their country occupied by Russian troops.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the Russian leader was using ‘highly predictable and manipulative words‘ to reject a ceasefire without explicitly rejecting it.
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Keir Starmer is today hosting a video conference with leaders of other nations to discuss a peace plan for Ukraine (Leon Neal/Getty Images)
Donald Trump had said that Russia faces a ‘very bad punishment‘ if Putin didn’t agree to the ceasefire, but later said he was ‘getting pretty good vibes’ that Russia would agree to the ceasefire, saying: “I think I know him pretty well and I think he’s going to agree.”
Sir Keir Starmer, the UK Prime Minister, is today (15 March) holding further talks with countries on the possibility of establishing a ‘coalition of the willing’ peacekeeping force for Ukraine, and said that Putin must not play games over a ceasefire.
Starmer said: “We can’t allow President Putin to play games with President Trump’s deal.
“The Kremlin’s complete disregard for President Trump’s ceasefire proposal only serves to demonstrate that Putin is not serious about peace.”
Russia has not agreed to the ceasefire and the PM hit out at Putin’s attempts to delay having to make a decision on it, insisting that ‘the world needs to see action’ on peace.
He said: “Putin is trying to delay, saying there must be a painstaking study before a ceasefire can take place, but the world needs to see action, not a study or empty words and pointless conditions.
“My message to the Kremlin could not be clearer: stop the barbaric attacks on Ukraine, once and for all, and agree to a ceasefire now. Until then we will keep working around the clock to deliver peace.”
Vladimir Putin has said he wants conditions on a 30 day ceasefire in his invasion of Ukraine, including Ukraine giving up territory Russia has occupied (MAXIM SHEMETOV/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Starmer continued with his words on the Russian invasion of Ukraine today by saying that he thought Russia would have to engage seriously in negotiations at some point.
“My feeling is that sooner or later [Putin is] going to have to come to the table and engage in serious discussion, but – and this is a big but for us this morning in our meeting – we can’t sit back and simply wait for that to happen,” the PM said from Downing Street.
“We have to keep pushing ahead, pushing forward, and preparing for peace, and a peace that will be secure and that will last.
“I think that means strengthening Ukraine so they can defend themselves, and strengthening, obviously, in terms of military capability, in terms of funding, in terms of the provision of further support from all of us to Ukraine.
“Secondly, being prepared to defend any deal ourselves through a coalition of the willing. We’ve begun that process and this morning we can take it forward.
“And then, thirdly, and really importantly, given the developments of the last few days, to keep the pressure on Putin to come to the table, and I think collectively we’ve got a number of ways that we can do that.
“So it’s those three heads, really, that we’re going to focus on in this meeting, strengthening Ukraine, being prepared to defend any deal ourselves through a coalition of the willing, and keeping that pressure on Russia at this crucial time.”
