Philip Hammond evokes an acceleration of the withdrawal from Afghanistan
(BRUSSELS2) Her Gracious Majesty's troops could withdraw from Afghanistan earlier than planned, according to what Philip Hammond, the British Minister of Defence, told our colleagues at Guardian (read here). Admitting that just six months ago the army insisted on keeping as many men as possible for as long as possible in the field, the army command today is "surprised by the ease with which they were able to withdraw and leave Afghan forces their share of responsibility" did he declare. The United Kingdom has already closed 52 of its 86 military bases and checkpoints in the past six months in Helmand province. "We are reconsidering today how many men we actually need... there might be a possibility for a little more flexibility in view of the withdrawal" he added. "I think the clear message I got from the military is that it might be possible to withdraw more soldiers in 2013».
Speaking candidly about the reasons for the presence of the British army, he also said that now that Al Qaeda had been eliminated from the country, it was not legitimate to ask the troops to put their lives in danger. to build the Afghan state. "The final assessment of success (from the British military operation) must be based on the extent to which we can leave an Afghanistan that will continue to prevent terrorists from entering its territory Internationaland not to see Afghanistan become a democratic country with a society that respects human rights and an education worthy of the name, he said.
British troops were deployed in the province of Helmand in 2006 and their final withdrawal is envisaged for the end of 2014. Hammond admittedly refused to go into the details of a new timetable. But this is indeed the first time that an early withdrawal has been made public by London.
The Minister also recognized that a full peace in Afghanistan will have to involve engaging in “a Northern Irish strategy” towards in any case the moderate part of the insurgents, in order to integrate them through reconciliation and integration. "It's reality. You cannot find a lasting agreement with a significant part of the population that remains outside (of this agreement)".
NB: the United Kingdom is the second contributor to the International Assistance and Security Force (ISAF) after the United States, and has lost 427 soldiers since the beginning of the conflict.
green on blue
The Minister also returned to the attacks "green on blue- when members of the Afghan forces (green flag) go after their ISAF counterparts (blue flag). He thus "spoke with one of the commanders-in-chief about these attacks and that investigations have shown serious flaws in the way certain elements of the Afghan troops have been handled in the past". The minister also revealed that 60 soldiers have been fired from the Afghan army in recent weeks and that 600 others have been jointly investigated by British and Afghan teams for the latest killings. These "internal" attacks are no longer negligible: of the 20 British soldiers who have died - in recent months - 5 have been killed by "green on blue" attacks (the uniform of the Afghan police).
