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| Britain |
| British frontline troops are refused kit to fight Taliban |
| 2007-01-21 |
| British soldiers fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan have had dozens of urgent requests for operational equipment turned down on cost grounds, it can be revealed. Demands by officers for attack weapons and vital tools, as well as night-vision equipment and thermal-imaging devices used to distinguish friend from foe, have all been refused by the Ministry of Defence. The revelation has sparked accusations that Tony Blair has reneged on promises he made to British troops just four months ago, when he pledged that commanders would be supplied with whatever they needed to "get the job done". The Sunday Telegraph has learned that all four of the Army's mine protected vehicles (MPVs), used to extract injured troops from minefields in Afghanistan, have broken down. Officers have also complained that the shortage of Chinook helicopters, first raised by senior officers last summer, was still a fundamental problem for commanders in Helmand province, where 4,500 British troops are fighting the Taliban. During an interview on British Armed Forces Radio last October, the Prime Minister said: "If commanders on the ground want more equipment – armoured vehicles, for example, more helicopters – that will be provided. Whatever package they want, we will do." Mr Blair went further in a newspaper article, stating: "[British forces] will get, I promise, whatever frontline commanders tell us they need to complete their job." But MPs and senior officers accused the Prime Minister of betraying Britain's armed forces. Liam Fox, the Tory shadow defence spokesman, said: "This shows every promise made by Tony Blair to our troops was utterly untrue. This is a complete betrayal by this Government of all of those who risk life and limb for this country's security. It will disgust the British people that Blair's spin so callously puts our frontline troops at risk." Just a week ago this newspaper disclosed that the first official report into the war in Afghanistan stated that commanders had insufficient troops and too few helicopters and that the mission was lacking political direction. Commanders regard the MPV as one of the most vital pieces of equipment in Afghanistan, where more than 10 million mines lie primed after 20 years of war. Since last June two servicemen have been killed in mine explosions and three have been seriously injured. One source revealed that the farthest the MPVs have travelled outside Camp Bastion in Helmand was just one mile. Another officer said that troops from Estonia and Denmark who were working alongside the Royal Marines were better equipped and had more reliable armoured vehicles than did British troops. More at the link. |
| Posted by:mrp |
| #7 Hopefully Britain and we can hang on until we boomers die off and better men take over. Screw that. I think we should help the boomer pols shuffle on off this temporal plane. They're suicidal idiots. |
| Posted by: Chuck Darwin 2007-01-21 20:12 |
| #6 Hopefully Britain and we can hang on until we boomers die off and better men take over. |
| Posted by: RWV 2007-01-21 17:52 |
| #5 Socialism is necrotising. The Democrats will do the same thing, they have a track record of it under Clinton and Carter. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom 2007-01-21 15:23 |
| #4 Though it would cost the British commander his job, he should officially notify the American commander that because of equipment shortages, his force is unable to continue to press the battle against the enemy, and in a given time they must withdraw. If Blair did nothing then, they he would order the withdraw, and once his forces were in a safe location, he could offer his resignation if requested. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2007-01-21 15:20 |
| #3 A vision of things to come for US troops once Democratic congress gets into stride. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2007-01-21 12:42 |
| #2 This along with the proposed cuts in the British Navy makes it very clear that the Brit political class is unwilling to do the basic things necessary to sustain a Brit presence in the WoT. Whether that's because (other than Tony) they find the whole idea of a WoT laughable, whether they've got their heads in the PC sand, or whether they're just hoping that the alligator eats them last isn't clear to me. But after Tony steps down, don't be surprised if the Brits pull out of the fight in the WoT near completely. Gordie Brown certainly doesn't have his heart in it. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2007-01-21 12:30 |
| #1 The epitome of "penny wise, pound foolish". There's only one reason to have a military, and that's to protect the citizens of a nation. The only way a military can do that is to have the personnel, equipment, and procedures that guarantee success. The Brits need to expel the EU, deport all non-citizens, and cut the welfare state, so they can build up their armed forces for the long struggle against islaminutz. Anything else will guarantee failure and loss of liberty to every British subject. I pray there's someone in Britain intelligent enough to understand that, but I haven't seen any signs of it in the last five years. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2007-01-21 12:28 |