Geopolitical pressures 'very much' on soldiers’ minds as they train alongside NATO allies

British soldiers are intensifying training operations at home while taking part in major NATO exercises abroad, as rising global tensions sharpen the focus on conflict readiness.

President Donald Trump’s demand that Greenland be handed over to the United States has triggered an explosive diplomatic row - and LBC has been told the prospect of future conflict is weighing on the minds of those on the ground.

Lieutenant Cameron Fairrie, who spoke to LBC while overseeing artillery drills in Northumberland, said the international situation is impossible to ignore.

“We’re at a very tense point in global politics generally,” he said. “We’ve had years of land war between two major European countries.

“And more recently, you’ve had a very different approach to foreign policy from the United States - one of our key allies - so of course it’s something for us to be thinking about.”

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Lt Fairrie is among hundreds of British soldiers battling through wind, rain and cold at Otterburn Camp, one of the UK’s most demanding military training grounds.

The vast Otterburn ranges, long used to prepare troops for combat, are currently hosting around 300 soldiers from 4th Regiment Royal Artillery, practicing heavy-weapons firing across rugged hills and open moorland.

And in Midlothian, French and British soldiers from the Royal Regiment of Scotland have been conducting joint drills, testing how quickly units from different NATO nations can integrate under pressure.

It comes just weeks after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed to send troops to Ukraine if a peace deal is made with Russia.

Captain Emerick from the 27 Infantry Mountain Battalion told LBC: “For our five special sections, the snipers, drone pilots, anti-tanks, mortars and gunners, the aim here in the end is to work together better.

“It’s essential…in the context of an increasingly complex geopolitical environment. The expansion of the battle space, the integration of drones and the growth in firepower require adaption.

“The purpose is to prepare for any eventuality”.

And asked how important it was for the two forces to be training together Fusilier Lenny of the 2 SCOTS told LBC: “Massively. As NATO allies we need that cohesion.

“If we were to go over to Eastern Europe you wouldn’t have the luxury of the time that we’re spending now to communicate with each other and figure out how each other work.

“So it’s good to do it now, so if that time does ever come the knowledge is already there.”

The skills that soldiers are practicing would be critical in a real-world conflict.

“In a scenario like Ukraine,” Lt Fairrie said back at Otterburn, “manoeuvre is an absolutely key part of artillery battle.

“You can think of it much more like a game of battleships, or cat and mouse - you’re trying to find out where the enemy assets are before they find you.”

Major Martin Simms said the troops are “leaning as many lessons as we can from what is going on over there, seeing where and when we can put those improvements in place.”

One such improvement is drone-defense netting across their camp - a low-tech but increasingly vital measure designed to protect equipment from aerial strikes.

These efforts come hot on the heels of a series of multinational NATO drills designed to improve collective readiness, particularly on the alliance’s eastern flank - often drawing direct lessons from the war in Ukraine.