New Army head warns British troops to be prepared to fight to prevent war spreading in Europe

General Sir Patrick Sanders, the Chief of the General Staff

(Picture: PA)

British troops are being warned they must be prepared to fight to prevent the spread of war in Europe.

General Sir Patrick Sanders, Chief of the General Staff, will say in a speech on Tuesday that he had never seen such a clear threat to peace and democracy as the "brutal aggression" of Russian president Vladimir Putin.