I agree. The situation in mainland Europe is a boiling pot, and every nation should be prepared for the worst. I think it's a damned if we do, damned if we don't scenario with Putin; we need to be prepared for the worst, as he is shown himself to be tyrannical and unpredictable.

I will say that I don't think a stick or lack thereof will change Putin's approach. He will do what he plans to do, regardless of the perceived threat from NATO countries. He's already shown that he can defeat his enemies without a war (IE trumps appeasement surrounding Russia), so we need to be vigilant in more areas than just military. It's a huge issue spanning multiple avenues.

All of that being said, I think (or hope) a lot of this will be hashed out via membership votes. A general anti-war stance doesn't necessarily mean demilitarisation, as the current climate is undoubtedly a concern for many, and I would imagine the number of people who would be pro-demilitarisation right now are few and far between.

Corbyn's stance on Russia seemed ok when he was up against Theresa May, but in the harsh light of 2025, I fear he's a massive tankie at heart and that's not where most of us are.

The sums being invested in the drive to war are grotesque. There's a difference between making sure the UK is properly defended and the £150 billion+ a year the UK is moving to commit to spending on weapons of mass destruction with little enlargement of the actual armed forces. The drumbeat of war causes only hysteria and it's very hard to discern the difference between fact and fiction.