Britain needs to prepare society and state institutions once again for the conditions of a major military crisis, since the current population lives too relaxed a life. This opinion was expressed during a discussion of the defense plan in the British Parliament by Richard Barrons, former Commander of Joint Forces Command.

According to him, one of the key tasks is to return the country to the level of readiness typical of the Cold War period. After that, Barrons believes, society will have to be prepared for a possible direct war with Russia that could last not months, but years.

He said that in a crisis situation the government must have the ability to manage the country’s everyday life. Barrons noted that under such conditions, individual citizens cannot be left to decide for themselves whether they will participate in what is happening or not.

The former military commander separately pointed to the need to support mobilization processes. According to him, the state must ensure the transition of the armed forces from a relatively calm state to wartime mode. This involves calling up reserves, dispersing people, transferring equipment and personnel to the continent, as well as being ready for casualties.

Barrons stressed that what matters is not only initial readiness, but also the resilience of the system. As an example, he cited Ukraine’s experience, where, according to him, the war is already in its fifth year. He noted that such a conflict is unlike the invasion of Libya or even the Afghan campaign, which had more limited time frames.

In Barrons’s assessment, a possible major war could last for years, involve mass casualties and cause significant damage to infrastructure. Therefore, the country must be able not only to enter a conflict, but also to withstand its consequences.

The former commander recalled that during the Cold War, such an understanding of threats was considered normal. At that time, he said, people understood what war meant. Now, Barrons believes, this has been almost completely forgotten, and Britain has to rebuild such readiness almost from scratch.