BFBS Sitrep

Ukraine has punched a new hole through Russia’s minefields, ditches, and ‘dragons teeth’ in Western Zaporizhzhia, but is it enough to start taking back big swathes of land? Professor Michael Clarke explains why this is halfway to being a turning point, and Forces News reporter Simon Newton explains what obstacles are still in the way of Ukraine’s tanks. British Army Veteran Shaun Pinner made headl...

When Shaun Pinner left the Royal Anglian Regiment, after 9 years as a soldier, he had no intention of ever returning to military life. Two decades later he was fighting in Ukraine as one of the country’s marines, besieged in the city of Mariupol as it was battered and starved by Russian forces. When he was captured Shaun was beaten, tortured and eventually sentenced to death by firing squad. Yet h...

The Army’s about to test software which, with the help of tiny drones, can give soldiers a 3D model of their battlefield on a phone or tablet in minutes. The ‘Farsight’ system eliminates the need for network connections, big servers, and long waits. A former US special operations commander who’s helped develop the software tells us what it will mean to troops on the ground. Russia expert Emil...

This week Sitrep focuses on how the British military and defence industry are learning lessons from the war in Ukraine. Rear Admiral Andrew Betton, Director Joint Warfare at UK Strategic Command, says the way warfare has evolved in Ukraine is a wake-up call. Sitrep also explores how the defence industry is responding to the conflict in terms of new weapons and equipment. Plus General Lord Dannatt,...

In a special Sitrep podcast, the Head of the British Army says by the end of the decade the Army will be the most modern and the most lethal in Europe. Listen here to the exclusive interview with the CGS, General Sir Patrick Sanders

Sitrep hears from the 3 star British General helping to enforce the uneasy armistice on the border between North and South Korea. The UK is a member of the US-led United Nations Command Korea. Its role is to enforce the armistice and de-escalate tensions. Its Deputy Commander, Lieutenant General Andrew Harrison, tells Sitrep that the Demilitarised Zone is a ‘surreal’ and ‘dangerous’ place and warn...

For 70 years there’s been an armistice – but no peace treaty- between North and South Korea. In this special addition, Sitrep hears in full from the 3 star British General helping to enforce the uneasy armistice in his role as Deputy Commander of the US-led United Nations Command Korea.

Shaista Gul was known to thousands of British servicemen and women over the years. He created a small oasis of peace at the UK’s headquarters in Southern Afghanistan. But after Lashkar Gah main operating base closed in 2014 he had to leave the job he loved, and with it the garden he’d created.  What followed was Taliban intimidation, fatal attacks on his family, and eventually a perilous...

Supporting Ukraine, recruitment & retention, procurement problems and a budget to balance. The new Defence Secretary Grant Shapps has a lot to manage, but does it matter this is his first defence role, indeed does it matter who does the job right now? Professor Michael Clarke explains why his room for manoeuvre is limited, and what we can expect. Waiting on the Defence Secretary’s desk are 67...

Is it time for a radical rethink of who the Armed Forces allow to join, and at what rank, to fill critical skills gaps? For centuries most people have only been able serve their country by starting at the bottom and working their way up, after meeting strict elegibility criteria. But in the 21 st century, amid ever greater competition for top talent, should the forces be embracing neurodiversity,...

Amid a swirl of questions and conspiracy theories about the apparent death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, in a plane crash in Russia, one fact is clear. The mercenary group which has been doing the Kremlin’s dirty work for a decade has lost its founders and top team. Professor Michael Clarke explains what it means for the war in Ukraine and why the group, branded a threat to the UK by MP’s, will not b...

Two years since British troops left, and the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, millions of people are going hungry while women and girls have been stripped of basic rights. The Chairman of the Commons Defence Committee says we need to stop ‘shouting from the sidelines’ and re-engage with the Taliban, but after posting a video from Helmand describing the country as ‘transformed’ he’s facing a no...

Ukraine formed 12 brigades, each up to 5,000 soldiers strong, to take back territory from Russia. So far it’s only committed around a third of those forces. Professor Michael Clarke and Forces News Ukraine reporter Simon Newton discuss the military logic, and whether the next phase of the counter-offensive has actually already started. Is there a better way to handle complaints from members o...

The pen, they say, is mightier than the sword, but how? Words can be used as a weapon of war, and the right words used early enough might even save you from the many costs of kinetic operations. That’s the argument put forward in a new book – ‘Subversion, the strategic weaponization of narratives’. It’s author, Dr Andreas Krieg, tells us how weaponised narratives have been used to do things like o...

Ukraine’s President Zelensky says it’s ‘inevitable’ that war is returning to Russia, and two drone strikes on a Moscow skyscraper look like an attempt to prove the point. Professor of Defence Studies Michael Clarke explains why he’s worried by this, and we assess whether it makes any strategic sense. Ukraine is manufacturing, and using up, thousands of drones every month. Svitlana Morenets in Kyiv...

The President of Belarus says Wagner fighters, exiled to his country, are ‘getting on our nerves’ and want ‘an excursion’ into Poland. Sitrep examines whether this seriously threatens war between NATO and Russia, and we talk to Alicia Kearns MP about cross party warnings that Wagner is a direct threat to the UK. The Prime Minister has apologised to LGBT veterans who were kicked out of the forces,...

The UK’s ‘defence masterplan’ has been updated after just two years, because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Its conclusions are essentially to stick with the old plan, but it must be done faster and better. Despite being re-examined cuts of thousands of soldiers, and a third of the Army’s tanks, will stay. Professor Michael Clarke explains the key points, what they’ll mean for the Armed Forces,...

As the Armed Forces struggle to recruit and retain the people and skills they need, a major review is recommending a radical rethink of British military life and careers. The Haythornethwaite review found the forces need to do better at making their people feel valued. It was commissioned by the Defence Secretary to study ‘incentivisation’ for servicemen and women. Sitrep talks to the review’s mil...

The old military saying goes ‘winning the war is easier than winning the peace’. Sitrep explains what the NATO summit has and hasn’t done to prepare for the end of the war, with the help of Major General Tim Cross, who led the UK’s post-war efforts in Iraq. The summit delivered security guarantees for Ukraine from some allies, including the UK, but no timetable for NATO membership. We assess...

Ukraine’s counter offensive is being held up, in part, by densely packed Russian minefields. Former tank commander Justin Crump explains how they avoid the explosives, and clear a path through. Professor Michael Clarke tells us what progress Ukraine has made in the last month, and why a much bigger push looks imminent. Sitrep’s James Wharton has had exclusive access to British troops on the ground...

Some Eastern European countries have called on NATO to strengthen its eastern borders following recent events in Russia.  This week Germany said it plans to keep 4000 troops permanently in Lithuania, once the infrastructure is in place. Germany already leads a multi-national battlegroup in Lithuania, as the UK does in Estonia, as part of NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence. What could Germany’s...

The armed forces need to do better at making their people feel valued to deliver military capability. So says a major review of ‘incentivisation’ for servicemen and women – we explain its recommendations including flexible careers, simpler allowances, and skills based pay. The UK is the only NATO country to recruit 16 year olds into the forces, and a UN panel has renewed its call for the age to go...

As the Armed Forces struggle to recruit and retain the people and skills they need, a major review is recommending a radical rethink of British military life and careers. The Haythornethwaite review found the forces need to do better at making their people feel valued. It was commissioned by the Defence Secretary to study ‘incentivisation’ for servicemen and women. Sitrep talks to the review’s mil...

The push to retake Ukrainian territory held by Russia has started modestly, but there is a bigger strategy behind it. Michael Clarke explains how this is actually about stretching Russian forces, and Colin Freeman updates us from close to the front line. Eleven British universities have been criticised for working with Iranian partners on technologies that could have military uses. Former tank-com...

Ukraine’s counter-offensive appears to be underway, bringing us a stream of contradictory claims and confusing headlines. Professor Michael Clarke, and former intelligence officer Col. Philip Ingram, explain how we can make sense of it all in the midst of a disinformation war. A top US Air Force officer has warned AI enabled drones could turn against their operators, and infrastructure, in pursuit...