Morale is a concern as Nato chief warns war could last for ‘years’

In an interview published on Sunday in the German weekly Bild am Sonntag, Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said “nobody knows” how long the war could last

A Ukrainian soldier carries a US-supplied Stinger as he goes along the road in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

Four months of brutal fighting in Ukraine appear to be straining the morale of troops on both sides, prompting desertions and rebellion against officers’ orders, British defence officials said.

It comes as Nato’s chief warned the war could drag on for “years”.