Former MI6 chief says western governments have exaggerated threats of a Russian invasion

According to a former M16 chief, Western governments have exaggerated the risk of a “full-blooded” Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Sir John Sawers claimed that Vladimir Putin was “ahead of points” after forcing the issue of Nato back up the agenda and reminding European countries of their reliance on Russian gas.

“I don’t think that President Putin ever decided to invade the country and, indeed, I think it would always have been a very risky course for him to have taken,” he told the Today programme.

“But I think Russia has also come out of this with a number of important gains. I think the risk of full-blooded invasion … was never quite as high as was being portrayed by some Western governments, but I think that has receded.”

His comments came as Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, repeated his claim there would be a “whiff of Munich” in the air if Russia were to invade, but denied making any accusations around appeasement. Wallace also made a statement saying that Putin is a man “looking for a legacy.”