Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Crossing the Rubicon

click here to go to the blogAs predicted and expected, British troops in Afghanistan are facing huge rise in Taliban bombs. Such is the scale of the change that, between April and last month, British troops encountered 150 IEDs, compared with 90 in the previous six months. The rate of attacks has risen fivefold, from 15 a month to 75.

The good news is that, even with minimal equipment, British forces have developed considerable expertise in dealing with this threat, the casualty rate fortunately not reflecting the level of attacks.

The bad news is that, if we are to win this campaign, we need a change of attitude, the fundamentals of which we set out in our piece on Zambia. This recognises that the battle will be fought and won not by military prowess but by delivering on the peace and prosperity than can only come with a properly devised reconstruction programme, fully integrated with our military effort.

And, despite the best intentions of our troops in the field, this we see no signs of materialising.

Read more on Defence of the Realm

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