While Covid was a useful exercise in Armageddon planning, 21st-century Britain is arguably less ready for actual warfare than it was even 30 years ago. At the end of the Cold War, most of the 100-strong network of nuclear bunkers were closed, along with around 1,500 underground posts for the Royal Observer Corps, a 10,000-strong volunteer force. Right now, such scenarios tend to exercise only the minds of Ministry of Defence war-gamers and military thriller writers. But far-fetched as they might sound, General Sir Patrick Sanders, the head of Britain’s army, believes it is time we dwelt on them more. Leaders including Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen have both called for an accelerated roll-out of clean energy. The conflict could push up British energy bills to £3,000 in October 2022, potentially a £600 increase from previously expected levels, according to ECIU. This is a grave moment for the security of Europe. Russia's unprovoked and unjustified attack on Ukraine is putting countless lives at risk, he said. What would happen to people who refuse conscription if it's introduced? Military kit also needs boots on the ground to operate it – hence Sir Patrick’s call for a “Citizen Army” to boost the regular Armed Forces. According to a 2022 YouGov poll, only one in five Britons would volunteer for service in the event of an invasion. Britain has also allowed ammunition supplies to dwindle to “dangerously low levels,” according to a Parliamentary Defence Committee report. Gen Sir Richard Barrons, the former head of the British Joint Forces Command, told the committee that he doubted there were “sufficient munitions to sustain a high-intensity conflict for more than about a week”. The decline in manufacturing means there are far fewer factories that can be converted to make arms, as happened in the Second World War, when car makers churned out Spitfire parts. The UK cannot and will not just look away at Russia's hideous and barbaric attack on Ukraine, Boris Johnson has said. https://euronewstop.co.uk/what-is-ukraines-neutral-status.html is not protected from rising prices purely because it relies less on Russian gas. Moscow’s ambassador to London previously warned that the UK would be hit with “immediate retaliation” if it tried to sanction Russia. If President Putin decides to extend his attacks beyond Russia and into a neighbouring Nato state, such as Latvia, Lithuania or Estonia, then the UK would be bound to go to war with Russia. But Ukraine is not a part of Nato, so the Western response to Russia’s invasion will initially focus on sanctions. Services The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has since advised all UK citizens to leave the country, but it is not known how many remain and the FCDO has declined to comment on numbers. Since the Russian invasion of Crimea in 2014, the UK has sanctioned around 183 individuals under the Russia sanctions regime. There was a major separatist conflict in Chechnya in the 1990s, with a decade of ultimately unsuccessful fighting for its independence. Speaking as the Foreign Office pulled some embassy staff out of Ukraine, the PM said the situation was pretty gloomy but war was not inevitable. The German government has brought forward its target for 100% renewable electricity by five years to 2035. In response to the current crisis, the EU is proposing expedite plans to link Ukrainian's electricity system to the EU's, which would boost Ukraine's independence from Russia's grid, with which it is currently tied. Ukrainian protesters gathered outside Downing Street on Thursday afternoon to call for more action from the UK and the international community. Because this act of wanton and reckless aggression is an attack not just on Ukraine, it's an attack on democracy and freedom in eastern Europe and around the world. Russia’s invasion caused international stock markets to drop dramatically, with the FTSE 100 in London falling by 3.2 per cent. Russian invasion of Ukraine: UK government response Several European countries bordering Ukraine are already preparing for the arrival of refugees fleeing the Russian invasion. French President Emmanuel Macron has said the Russian attack on Ukraine is a turning point in European history. Speaking on Thursday US President Joe Biden described the invasion as a premeditated attack without provocation, justification and necessity. Russia's ally Belarus will face similar sanctions because of its role in the attack on Ukraine. Russian airline Aeroflot will be banned from landing in the UK and within days all high tech and oil refinery equipment exports to Russia will not be allowed. Leaders including Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen have both called for an accelerated roll-out of clean energy. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss summoned Russia's ambassador to the UK, Andrei Kelin, for the second time this week to ask him to explain the illegal, unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. The prime minister did confirm that 1,000 more troops would be put on alert in the UK if Russia were to invade although Downing Street is likely to follow the lead set by Nato. The idea is that when borrowing is more expensive, people will have less money to spend. But Russia is a major producer in global energy markets, accounting for 17 per cent of gas and 12 per cent of oil production globally in 2019 (Chart B, bottom-right panel). Phillips P OBrien, professor of strategic studies at the University of St Andrews, wrote in an analysis piece that the potential return of Donald Trump to the White House could see the US neuter the Western military alliance. Oil prices have also risen since the invasion, given Russia’s role as an oil producer and as a form of security for investors as the stock market slumps. War in Ukraine is almost certain to exacerbate cost-of-living problems in the UK. Wholesale gas prices soared on Thursday following the invasion, and, while the UK does not import much gas directly from Russia, British consumers will still be affected by rising worldwide gas prices. In terms of military aid, the UK has trained 22,000 Ukrainian troops under Operation Orbital since 2015, supporting both Ukraine’s army and navy. Nato powers are already promising to build up their own forces in the alliance's eastern flank. Ukraine wants the opposite – it aspires to be part of the EU and Nato (the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) rather than under Russia’s control and so is firmly resisting Putin’s threats. If President Putin decides to extend his attacks beyond Russia and into a neighbouring Nato state, such as Latvia, Lithuania or Estonia, then the UK would be bound to go to war with Russia. This renewed attack is a grave violation of international law, including the UN Charter, Nato said. The UK and our allies condemn the Russian government’s unprovoked and premeditated invasion of Ukraine. This culminated on 29 December, when Russian unleashed its largest aerial assault against Ukraine since the war began. It killed at least 41 civilians, including a 15-year-old boy, wounded hundreds, and caused significant damage to civilian infrastructure, including a maternity hospital. It is regrettable - and sadly predictable - that we must gather today to condemn Russia’s latest wave of aerial attacks against the Ukrainian people. Ambassador Neil Holland condemns Russia's air attacks this week on Kyiv and Kharkiv, as well as the spate of attacks on Ukraine over the past month. In World War Two, single women aged 20 to 30 years old who did not have young children were called up to help on the home front as mechanics, engineers, air raid wardens, bus drivers, farmers, and more. Justin Bronk, an air war specialist from the defence think tank Rusi, told the BBC that, if confirmed, the loss of an A-50 would be a highly operationally significant and embarrassing loss for Russia's air force. Ukraine also provided around 3% of the UK’s iron and steel imports last year, another important commodity at a time when the Government is pursuing major infrastructure projects. That means extremely difficult choices for a Treasury gearing up for retrenchment and conscious that protecting military budgets means cuts would fall even more heavily on public services, themselves in desperate need of more investment. The prospect of further UK sanctions against Russia comes a day after the prime minister announced that five Russian banks had had their assets frozen and three Russian billionaires would have travel bans imposed. Ukraine's military says it has shot down a Russian military spy plane over the Sea of Azov, in what analysts say would be a blow to Moscow's air power. We will continue to work with Ukraine and our international partners for a just and sustainable peace. Conscription was briefly ended in Ukraine in 2013, however, following the Russian military intervention in the country in 2014, it got reinstated. While the UK has left its conscription days behind, there are still a large number of nations that make it mandatory for their citizens to serve their country. But the US has said the issue at stake is Russian aggression, not Nato expansion. He said the UK was leading on creating a package of economic sanctions against Russia and was supplying defensive weaponry to Ukraine. A core principle of European security after World War Two was that sovereign nations have a right to make their own choices. Forces are on standby in eastern Europe, and Nato is working with Ukraine to modernise its forces and protect it against cyber attacks.
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