Military - in brief (16)
01 November 2005
UK: Troops deployed to Afghanistan: Defence secretary, John Reid, has announced that an extra 3,300 British troops are to be deployed in Afghanistan. The figures adds to the 1,000 already in the country and 1,950 that had been announced earlier; the overall total of troops in the country will not exceed 5,700 at any one time. In May, the UK will take control of Nato forces in the country. The timing of the deployment, to Helmand province, as the Taleban begin to flex their muscles, has caused some surprise. The cost of the operation is expected to exceed £1 bn over three years. The deployment is part of a "counter-terrorism" operation designed to prevent Afghanistan "from falling into the hands of the Taleban." At the moment much of the country is in the hands of traditional warlords, selectively backed and financed by the United States, and a resurgent Taleban. President Hamid Karzai is largely confined to the capital, Kabul.
BBC News
Norway: Government puts brake on overseas intervention: Norway's new labour/left/green government will withdraw its special forces from the US-led Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, along with all Norwegian personnel serving in Iraq except for a small group of officers deployed by NATO. The new government intends however to increase Norway's contribution to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. In the future, Norway will in preference participate in UN international operations. Norway will not withdraw the 150 personnel it has committed to the Swedish-led Nordic EU Rapid Reaction Force but will only participate in EU operations that have a clear UN mandate. Norway has also announced it will work for an international tax on weapons trading.
Jane's Defence Weekly 19.10.05 (John Berg)
UK: Court martial over illegal war: An RAF doctor faces jail after being charged with disobeying orders after refusing to fight in the Iraq war because he believes that it is illegal. Flight Lieutenant Malcolm Kendall-Smith, who is based at RAF Kinlos in Morayshire, Scotland, is facing four charges of disobeying a lawful command. Kendall-Smith has been decorated for his role in military operations in Afghanistan and for two previous tours in Iraq. He decided that it would be wrong to return after studying the advice to the government given by the attorney general, Lord Goldsmith. A serving officer is justified in refusing to obey a command if it is illegal. Senior officers have recently expressed concern at a recruitment crisis triggered by the Iraq war. General Sir Michael Walker, the chief of defence staff said that the army's ability to recruit was suffering because people saw the armed forces as guilty by association with Tony Blair's decision to invade Iraq.
Guardian 19.10.05, Sunday Times 22.10.05