British general Nick Carter warns of the danger of a war between Russia and the West

Nick Carter while in a speech (archive)

 Britain's top military official has cited a change in the "character of the war" and warned that there is a high risk that wrong decisions could lead to a war between Russia and the West.

General Nick Carter said there is a will of authoritarian enemies to use any means, including migrants, gas prices, or cyberattacks, to achieve their goals on the international stage, Radio Free Europe reports.

Carter, who is Britain's chief of defense, told Radio Times that the "traditional diplomatic tools and mechanisms" that existed during the Cold War and in an era of US domination are no more the same.

"Without these tools and mechanisms, there is a greater risk that these escalations or this escalation could lead to miscalculations. "For me, this is the main challenge we will face," he said.

His comments come amid rising tensions on the border between Poland and Belarus, where Minsk's ally Russia has deployed aircraft patrols with nuclear capabilities.

Thousands of migrants from the Middle East and Africa have flocked to the border between Belarus and Poland, hoping to reach the West.

According to General Carter, these border patrols in Belarus also reflect the dispute between Moscow and NATO over Ukraine, where Russian-backed separatists have been fighting for seven years, and in the Black Sea region, which includes Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the United States on November 13 that US and NATO activities in the Black Sea pose a "serious challenge" to Russia.

US and European officials have repeatedly warned of the threat of a Russian military strike, as Russia has reportedly sent troops near the border with Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Russian mercenaries are fighting in Central Africa, Russian intelligence has been accused of high-profile assassinations abroad, Belarus has threatened to block Russian gas supplies to Western Europe, and Russian intelligence-linked groups have been involved in major cyberattacks against the West in recent years.

"The nature of the war has changed," Carter said.

"I think we have to be careful that people do not end up allowing the belligerent nature of some of our policies to fall into a position where escalation leads to miscalculations," he added.

Aviation authorities in Britain reportedly escorted two Russian planes outside the UK area of ​​interest on 12 November, and London said it had sent a small military team for "engineering" support to the Polish border, which is an EU member.