Britain is facing its most dangerous security environment since the Cold War, the head of the armed forces has warned, citing growing threats from Russia and the need to prepare for prolonged conflicts.
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Chief of the Defence Staff Sir Richard Knighton said the risks confronting the UK are greater than at any point during his military career. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he described the current period as the most dangerous he has known and said Russia was increasingly testing Western defences.
Knighton said Moscow had been "probing, challenging and testing" the UK's military capabilities through conventional and non-conventional means, including cyber activity, sabotage and assassination attempts. He warned that Russia was "raising the stakes" and risked crossing a dangerous threshold.
His comments come ahead of the long-awaited publication of the government's Defence Investment Plan, which is expected within weeks. The document will outline how defence equipment and infrastructure projects will be funded over the next decade. Originally scheduled for release in autumn 2025, the plan has been delayed several times.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said on Friday that the strategy would be published before the upcoming Nato summit. He said ministers had worked closely with the armed forces while developing the plan to ensure it met the country's security needs.
Calls for Faster Defence Spending
Knighton backed calls for higher defence spending, saying Britain needed to invest more rapidly to meet emerging threats.
"Exactly as the prime minister says, we need to spend more on defence and do it faster," he said, adding that ministers faced difficult decisions when balancing national priorities.
He expressed confidence that the government understood the seriousness of the security environment and was responding by increasing defence expenditure.
Russia's Growing Military Activity
The military chief pointed to increased Russian long-range aviation activity in the High North, including the Arctic region and surrounding areas. He said the number of Russian strategic aircraft operations observed in 2026 had already matched levels seen during the whole of 2025.
While Royal Air Force jets regularly intercept Russian aircraft approaching areas of interest to the UK, there have been no recent reports of Russian military planes entering British sovereign airspace.
Knighton said the Strategic Defence Review published last year should be viewed as a "call to arms". He argued that the UK military must move beyond planning for short, limited conflicts and prepare for longer wars similar to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Preparing for Future Warfare
He also highlighted the changing nature of warfare, saying drones and autonomous systems would play an increasingly significant role in future conflicts.
Knighton's remarks echo concerns raised earlier this year by former defence secretary Lord Robertson, who warned that Britain's security was "in peril" and criticised what he described as complacency among political leaders.
In an April speech, Robertson argued that the UK was underprepared for modern threats and questioned whether current spending priorities were sufficient to guarantee national security.
The government has rejected suggestions that it is neglecting defence, pointing to plans for increased military spending and describing the defence budget as being on course to reach record levels.
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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 7 June 2026
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