A senior Ukrainian military officer has warned that Britain is dangerously unprepared for a major war and could pay a “high price” if Russian President Vladimir Putin expands the conflict in Ukraine to Europe.
Viktor Andrusiv, a major in the Ukrainian armed forces and former presidential adviser, said the UK must urgently learn from Ukraine’s experience before it is too late. His warning comes amid growing concern across NATO that Russia could escalate hostilities if diplomatic efforts fail.
Speaking against the backdrop of renewed calls by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte for Europe to prepare for war “like our grandparents endured,” Andrusiv said the greatest danger lies in disbelief. According to him, many people in Western countries still struggle to accept that large-scale war on European soil is a real possibility.
“The biggest problem is that people don’t believe this can happen,” Andrusiv said. He noted that Ukraine faced a similar mindset before Russia’s full-scale invasion, when the idea of tank columns and missile strikes seemed unthinkable in the 21st century.
Putin has recently warned that Russia is prepared to go to war with Europe if peace talks over Ukraine collapse, raising fears of a direct confrontation with NATO. Such a scenario would automatically draw in the UK under the alliance’s collective defence commitments.
British defence chiefs have already cautioned that the country’s armed forces have been “hollowed out” after decades of reduced military spending following the Cold War. Andrusiv agreed with that assessment, arguing that the UK’s military structure and equipment are outdated.
“I am sure you are not prepared,” he said. “That doesn’t mean you would lose for sure, but if you are not prepared, you will pay a higher price.”
Figures cited by defence analysts suggest Britain would need to invest billions more in personnel, ships and aircraft to be ready for a future conflict with Russia. Successive governments reduced defence budgets on the assumption that another major European war was unlikely.
Andrusiv stressed that modern warfare has fundamentally changed, pointing to Ukraine’s heavy reliance on drones and mass civilian mobilisation. He argued that Western military doctrines, which are built around professional armies, no longer fully reflect today’s realities.
“Such a kind of war will involve millions of civilians,” he said, adding that countries must adapt their training, discipline and command structures accordingly. He also highlighted the speed of innovation on the battlefield, particularly the rapid evolution of drone technology.
Ukraine has deployed millions of drones over the past two years, while the UK’s current stockpile is estimated at only a few thousand, an amount that would last less than a day at Ukrainian usage rates.
Andrusiv warned that ignoring these lessons could have devastating consequences. “War is closer than we think. Deaths are closer than we think,” he said, urging Britain to prepare its society as well as its armed forces.
His comments echo recent warnings from senior UK officials. Armed Forces Minister Al Carns has said Britain is already on a war footing, citing a sharp increase in Russian threats and hybrid attacks, while former NATO leaders have cautioned that the country is under-prepared and under-protected.
As NATO leaders continue to urge Europe to abandon complacency, Andrusiv’s message is stark: believing war is impossible is itself one of the greatest risks facing Britain and its allies.
