Speaking to Jenny Kleeman and Chloe Tilley, chair of the select defence committee Tobias Ellwood said that NATO was partially responsible for Putins war crimes in Ukraine.
He said: “We must learn and understand that our timidity, that I spoke of, has actually given Putin the green light, hes recognised that he can exploit how hesitant weve become, not really wishing to cross that line, hiding behind that NATO curtain if you like.
“And therefore, weve actually given Putin free rein to conduct war crimes.”
Commenting on General Richard Shirreffs analysis that the West should prepare for war, he said: “We need to be get better as we did in the Cold War, of estimating, assessing and taking risks.
“This is so critical, because as you say the geopolitics of this are far far wider than just Ukraine itself.
“So we need to brace ourselves, prepare ourselves for war in order to defend peace. Thats what we need to do now.”
Asked whether sending more weapons to Ukraine would escalate the war, he said: “We should be mindful of, but not scared of, not spooked by the fact that he has nuclear weapons, and the fact that Putin keeps mentioning this.”
Listen to Tobias Ellwoods interview in full on Times Radio.
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