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The chief of Britain’s armed forces said the nation’s security “is not the responsibility of the military alone”.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, the Chief of Defence Staff, said it was important for society to “understand the stakes” of maintaining the country’s safety.
Sir Richard’s comments on Remembrance Sunday were echoed by Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, who described it as “tragic and concerning” that many people no longer felt the call to serve their country.
Sir Richard took over as Chief of the Defence Staff in September and is responsible for delivering the strategic defence review published in June at a time when the Government is seeking to boost defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by April 2027.
Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, Sir Richard warned of an “increasingly uncertain world”.
Citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as highlighting that European countries were not as safe as they once were, he said: “This conflict reminds us that peace is never guaranteed. It (the UK) must be defended, and sometimes at great cost.
“Whether deterring aggression on Nato’s eastern flank, supporting hurricane relief efforts in the Caribbean, or protecting critical undersea cables at home, we can be proud of our armed forces and what they do for the nation.
“But defence is not the responsibility of the military alone. It is a national endeavour. It requires investment, innovation, and the support of a society that understands the stakes.”
Mrs Badenoch told the Telegraph the country was “losing a sense of who we are and what we’re fighting for”.
She said “a slow erosion of pride in our schools, our institutions, even parts of our media where the story of Britain is too often told through shame” was affecting national morale, while saying only 10% of those aged between 18 and 28 would be prepared to go to war for the country.
She added: “A nation is only a nation when people are prepared to defend it. And it is both tragic and concerning that many people in Britain today no longer feel that call.
“Why would young people want to fight for their country, when they are told that where they come from is wicked? That their inheritance is racist.
“How many people now, when they think about Britain, picture this as the country that stood alone against Hitler, led the fight against Soviet tyranny and has a longer history of stability and democracy than any other major power.
“This is the country that spent a fortune to end slavery in the world. Our history is something to be proud of. The wars we remember were not won by Britain alone, but by Commonwealth troops across national and ethnic divides fighting side by side to defend liberty and democracy.
“We are told again and again that diversity is our strength, when in reality the opposite is true. It is putting our differences aside and standing behind a shared national story that makes us stronger.”
