UK will not look away from Russia invasion in Ukraine PM

But because the UK operates in international gas markets, prices will be hit by any drop in global supply. It comes as the forces struggle to retain female personnel amid a sex harassment crisis engulfing the military. All three armed forces are experiencing a recruitment and retention crisis, with the number of fully trained soldiers in the Army set to fall to 72,500. On Tuesday, Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, met with the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, where he urged others to join the UK in increasing their aid. In 2022, Gen Sir Patrick used a speech to warn that the UK was facing its “1937 moment” over the war in Ukraine, and said Britain must be ready to “fight and win” to ward off the threat from Russia. Russia wants assurances that Ukraine will never be allowed to join Nato; that Nato members will have no permanent forces or infrastructure based in Ukraine; and for a halt to military exercises near Russia's border.

The British government is pushing for Russia to be expelled from the Swift global payment network as the UK braces for a  spike in gas and oil prices following Vladimir Putin’s order for an invasion of Ukraine. Opposition leaders including Labour’s Sir Keir Starmer criticised the initial package of sanctions for being too soft. The Prime Minister called Russia’s attack a “massive invasion”, and accused President Putin of having “attacked a friendly country without any provocation and without any credible excuses”. This is because Nato uses a system of collective security, whereby its independent member states agree to mutual defence in response to an attack by any external party. If Ukraine was part of Nato, the military alliance which is made up of 30 member states, including the US and UK, every Nato nation would have  to launch an armed attack against Russia.

UK sanctions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Russia's military is numerically superior to Ukraine's, but Ukraine's battlefield tactics and precision Western weapons have narrowed that gap. Many poorly-trained conscripts were killed in those costly wars, and this time the Kremlin appears anxious to avoid fuelling anti-war sentiment. Mr Shoigu said the extra troops were required to defend a front line stretching for some 1,000km (600 miles). The COP talks are designed to give all countries an equal seat at the table, with anyone able to block progress, although these days few want to be perceived as great disruptors. A small group of around 18 Conservative MPs want the UK to increase its own fossil fuel supply by boosting North Sea fossil fuel production and lift the fracking moratorium. The German government has brought forward its target for 100% renewable electricity by five years to 2035.

However, Ukraine’s role as a major food producer is reflected in the UK’s import statistics. Up to 5,000 British citizens were estimated to be living in Ukraine before the crisis. 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  https://euronewstop.co.uk/what-would-happen-if-russia-nuked-ukraine.html  of Crimea in 2014, the UK has sanctioned around 183 individuals under the Russia sanctions regime.

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"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. 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". Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the UK should brace itself for the "economic pain" the country will experience by imposing sanctions against Russia. Ukrainian protesters gathered outside Downing Street on Thursday afternoon to call for more action from the UK and the international community. The UK's Ministry of Defence said Russian forces based in Belarus were advancing towards Ukraine's capital Kyiv. He said the UK and allies will launch a "massive package" of sanctions to "hobble" Russia's economy.

• Even if cyberattacks didn’t wipe out Netflix, wartime Britons would still face a life without luxuries.
• "The nightmare scenario would be that the states close to Russia double down on aid to Ukraine while those farther west decide to force a deal on Putin's terms. Then Europe itself could fracture," he says.
• Russia initially denied sending conscript soldiers to Ukraine, but several officers were disciplined after cases came to light of conscripts being forced to sign contracts.
• In 2022, Gen Sir Patrick used a speech to warn that the UK was facing its “1937 moment” over the war in Ukraine, and said Britain must be ready to “fight and win” to ward off the threat from Russia.

He said new UK sanctions against Russia would be announced "in waves" and warned it would be "the largest and most severe economic sanctions" package Russia had ever seen. It comes after President Putin announced a "special military operation" in Ukraine's Donbas region in a televised address to the Russian people earlier and said the Ukrainian people would be able "to choose freely" who ran the country. Downing Street said the leaders agreed that if a further Russian incursion took place, "allies must enact swift retributive responses including an unprecedented package of sanctions". For now the UK appears likely to stick to sanctions rather than engaging in direct military action unless a Nato ally is attacked, although some Conservative MPs have called for the Government to provide air support to Ukraine. As cars queued on Ukraine's border with Moldova, the country's pro-EU president, Maia Sandu said she was declaring a state of emergency and was prepared to give help to tens of thousands of Ukrainians. Such public arguments over money have led him into conflict with the MoD, amid reports of clashes with the chief of defence staff, Adm Sir Tony Radakin.

What does Russia’s war in Ukraine mean for UK?

Meanwhile, other Western defence sources have expressed concern about an increase in signals intelligence and "chatter" being monitored which could signal Russia's preparedness to invade. “Covid showed our ugly side, with people getting upset when all they were being asked to do was sit on the sofa at home,” said the former TA soldier. But if Ukraine’s experience is anything to go by, the threat posed by a common enemy could have a unifying effect. Kyiv’s politicians used to be notoriously fractious – not least because of divisions between the pro and anti-Russian camps. Even during the London Blitz in 1941, nearly 5,000 looting cases came before the Old Bailey.

• Cuts have already seen the size of the British Army fall from more than 100,000 in 2010 to around 73,000 now.
• Mr Murayev called the claims "stupid" in an interview with Reuters news agency.
• General Sir Patrick Sanders will stress the need for the Government to “mobilise the nation” in the event of war with Russia in a speech on Wednesday.
• Despite warnings from the US and its Nato allies that any invasion by Russia of Ukraine would have "severe economic consequences," Moscow's military build-up on the border continues.

It said Nato allies were sending additional ships and fighter jets to eastern Europe to reinforce defences and increase deterrence, in response to the continuing build-up of Russian forces. But as Ukraine is not a Nato member state, “the alliance will not provide military support in the form of troops”, Oliver Wright said in The Times. It's promising to deploy British forces to eastern European members of the Nato military alliance if Russian troops cross Ukraine's borders. Balazs Orban, chief political aide to the prime minister, said Hungary sent a proposal to the EU over the weekend showing it was open to using the budget for the aid package if other "caveats" were added. The government's independent advisory Climate Change Committee recently warned that any new North Sea projects will take an average of 28 years to start producing oil and gas.

• There would also be concerns about looting, especially if food shortages started to bite.
• 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.
• 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.
• "This renewed attack is a grave violation of international law, including the UN Charter," Nato said.
• The war will also “damage economic confidence as the global economy still labours to recover from Covid-19”.
• Some migrants might stay in neighbouring Poland and eastern European countries, but some might head further west and eventually end up in the UK.