Ukraine war: Sending untrained military won't help or solve anything in fight against Putin and Russia

Even with 12 years service in the armed forces I would never consider myself an expert in warfare, or the terrible conflict in progress in Ukraine, but it’s impossible not to be moved by the events, stories, and footage coming to our screens.
By errol edwards
Published 7th Mar 2022, 10:30 GMT
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Two comments made recently made my ears prick up slightly.

Firstly Foreign Secretary Liz Truss’s backing of British people going out to fight in Ukraine.

She has more experience of world politics and works at a higher pay grade than I ever will.

Ukrainian servicemen share jokes while sitting around a fire during an exercise in a Joint Forces Operation controlled area in the Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 10, 2022. A peace agreement for the separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine that has never quite ended is back in the spotlight amid a Russian military buildup near the country's borders and rising tensions about whether Moscow will invade.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)Ukrainian servicemen share jokes while sitting around a fire during an exercise in a Joint Forces Operation controlled area in the Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 10, 2022. A peace agreement for the separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine that has never quite ended is back in the spotlight amid a Russian military buildup near the country's borders and rising tensions about whether Moscow will invade.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Ukrainian servicemen share jokes while sitting around a fire during an exercise in a Joint Forces Operation controlled area in the Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 10, 2022. A peace agreement for the separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine that has never quite ended is back in the spotlight amid a Russian military buildup near the country's borders and rising tensions about whether Moscow will invade.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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However telling, encouraging or condoning untrained people to go and fight out in the Ukraine to me is surely ill advised.

People in Ukraine taking up arms to defend themselves is absolutely the right thing to do, as they have little, or no choice. It’s their country and their families – who wouldn’t want to protect that.

But sending untrained inexperienced people is risky at best, both for them and for the people around them.

All our British forces have intense training in the handling and the use of their weapons, with regular refreshers and further training given on a regular basis.

A RAF Eurofighter Typhoon flies over RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, as it arrives to bolster the number of jets at the base which began the first British bombing runs over Syria. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Thursday December 3, 2015. The air strikes were carried out within hours of a vote by MPs in the Commons to back extending operations against Islamic State (IS) from neighbouring Iraq. Four RAF Tornado jets, which carry a range of munitions including Paveway IV guided bombs and precision-guided Brimstone missiles, took off from the Akrotiri base in Cyprus but defence officials refused to be drawn on the targets of their mission. See PA story POLITICS Syria. Photo credit should read: Nick Ansell/PA Wire A RAF Eurofighter Typhoon flies over RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, as it arrives to bolster the number of jets at the base which began the first British bombing runs over Syria. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Thursday December 3, 2015. The air strikes were carried out within hours of a vote by MPs in the Commons to back extending operations against Islamic State (IS) from neighbouring Iraq. Four RAF Tornado jets, which carry a range of munitions including Paveway IV guided bombs and precision-guided Brimstone missiles, took off from the Akrotiri base in Cyprus but defence officials refused to be drawn on the targets of their mission. See PA story POLITICS Syria. Photo credit should read: Nick Ansell/PA Wire
A RAF Eurofighter Typhoon flies over RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, as it arrives to bolster the number of jets at the base which began the first British bombing runs over Syria. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Thursday December 3, 2015. The air strikes were carried out within hours of a vote by MPs in the Commons to back extending operations against Islamic State (IS) from neighbouring Iraq. Four RAF Tornado jets, which carry a range of munitions including Paveway IV guided bombs and precision-guided Brimstone missiles, took off from the Akrotiri base in Cyprus but defence officials refused to be drawn on the targets of their mission. See PA story POLITICS Syria. Photo credit should read: Nick Ansell/PA Wire
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Untrained personnel have no combat experience, even in the shape of simulated exercise.

To use a weapon you need a cool head which only comes with experience and training.

In a split second you need to have a clue who is friend or foe, and you need to hit the right one.

This is why Ms Truss was ill advised to make her statement.

If you have medical experience then I believe you would be of more value than someone who has no weapons training.

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Weapons are, really, only as good as the training and experience of the person handling them.

Other comments I’ve been hearing include that ‘we need to increase spending on our armed forces’.

This will prove very difficult and expensive. If we increased spending by two, four or even 10 times we would still be miles behind America, Russia, China, and even North Korea.

Our armed forces have been shrinking since the end of World War II and only maintained at a certain size due to the Cold War.

This is why membership of Nato and the EU was so useful in terms of size, cooperation and firepower.

Sending untrained civilians will solve nothing.

Related topics:Liz TrussUkraineRussiaChina