Britain should "wake up" and consider a new "conscription system" adopted by Sweden, a former MI6 boss has said.
Sir Alex Younger has urged the UK to look into a Sweden-style format where those aged 18 must complete an enlistment form.
Only a selection are called up to do basic training with the military service.
Younger - who was chief of the Secret Intelligence Service from 2014 to 2020 - said he was against "blanket conscription" but was interested in "ways in which the broader country would participate and contribute to security in a time of an emergency".
Britain should 'wake up' and consider a new 'conscription system"'adopted by Sweden, a former MI6 boss has said
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Sweden introduced the scheme in 2017 following Russia’s invasion of Crimea in 2014.
"Ultimately, in extremis, I think we’d be looking at something like the model I understand exists in places like Sweden, where the government theoretically has the power to compel people to give their service one way or another but doesn’t exercise it except in areas where it’s really needed," the former head of MI6 told the BBC.
"You’ll notice on that list is not everyone being called up and going to the drafting station, I think that’s extremely unlikely."
It comes after Sweden joined the Nato military alliance in February.
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Younger also suggested that Britain needs to transfer defence matters in eastern European countries closer to Russia.
He said: “I think in some ways those are people [bordering Russia] that have been mugged by reality, and I think I am a person that has been mugged by reality. And I’m a liberal through and through – I want to live in a world where we don’t have to think about this stuff.
"But I’m bound to say that we seem to have convinced ourselves somehow that the advantages we have and the values that are shot through our country are kind of natural and don’t need defending
"And I think we’re in for a rude shock. And by contrast, if we do decide that we want to defend them, the need to do so probably goes down."
Sir Alex Younger suggested that Britain needs to transfer defence matters in eastern European countries closer to Russia
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He added that it was "rubbish" to think ideological and military rivalry was a thing of the past.
Younger added: "I’m up for a wake-up call."
His comments follow a debate triggered by Gen Sir Patrick Sanders - the head of the army - who said the UK should train a “citizen army” ready to fight a future war.
