Army chief says UK must double its lethality or be prepared for war in 2027

Walker said he had ‘a bold ambition’ for the British army ‘to double our fighting power in three years and triple by the end of the decade’. Photograph: Leon Neal/Getty Images

Britain must be prepared to fight a war in three years’ time and double the lethality of its army as the separate threats of Russia, China, Iran and North Korea come to a head, the new chief of the army has warned.

Gen Sir Roly Walker, the chief of the general staff, told reporters that the west faced “an axis of upheaval” with increasing military ambition and that a conflict involving one of the countries could lead to “a significant detonation” in another theatre.