BigBadBrian
09-26-2005, 09:54 AM
Plan to cut number of UK troops in Iraq is scrapped
By Sean Rayment, Defence Correspondent
(Filed: 18/09/2005)
Secret plans by the Government to reduce troop numbers in Iraq have been shelved - and there is now no official date for the withdrawal of British soldiers, The Sunday Telegraph has learnt.
The decision comes as ministers prepare to announce an unexpected redeployment of up to 6,000 members of the 7th Armoured Brigade - the renowned Desert Rats - in the conflict zone next month. This follows growing concerns that Iraq is heading into full-scale civil war.
The 7th Armoured Brigade will return to Iraq next month
Under the original withdrawal plans of John Reid, the Defence Secretary, up to 8,500 troops should have returned to Britain by next month with the rest coming home by the middle of next year.
But the confirmation of a new large-scale troop redeployment, and the news that there is no end-date for British withdrawal, have sparked fears among serving soldiers and senior military figures that Iraq may be developing into Britain's own "Vietnam".
Last night, senior officers accused the Government of having a "head-in-the-sand mentality" over Britain's defence requirements and its involvement in Iraq, where more than 200 civilians were killed in terrorists attack last week alone. They said the Army - which is also sending 3,000 extra troops to Afghanistan next April - was under-manned, "strapped for cash" and being "dangerously overstretched".
So far, operations in Iraq are estimated to have cost Britain £5 billion and, since the American-led invasion in 2003, 95 British troops have been killed there.
The redeployment of the Desert Rats, who fought in the 2003 battle for Basra, in southern Iraq, contradicts a plan drawn up two months ago by Mr Reid, Options for UK Force Posture in Iraq, which proposed the start of a troop pull-out next month.
The government document added that the planned reductions would save £500 million a year.
Last night, Admiral Sir Michael Boyce, the head of the armed services from 2001 to 2003, said he was concerned that Britain's Forces were being constantly asked to do more with less.
"If we want to remain a global force for good around the world, it seems strange that the Armed Forces are not being properly funded … the MoD is strapped for cash" he said.
One serving brigadier, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the danger of Britain becoming bogged down in its own "Vietnam war" was getting stronger every day. "The return of the 7th Armoured Brigade to Iraq is a significant benchmark," he said.
"There is a real head-in-the-sand mentality as to how we're going to extricate ourselves from this mess. There is no endgame to the problems in Iraq."
Andrew Robathan, a Tory defence spokesman who served in the SAS for five years, said: "The Army is overstretched and under-manned. Iraq is a mess … and thousands of soldiers will be sent to Afghanistan next year. And the MoD is still bent on cutting four infantry battalions."
A Ministry of Defence spokesman confirmed that the 7th Armoured Brigade would return to Iraq next month. He added: "There are no plans now or in the future to withdraw troops from Iraq. It is all dependent on the security situation."
• Thirty people were killed and 38 wounded in a car bomb explosion last night at a market in Nahrawan, a predominantly Shiite suburb south of Baghdad, Iraqi security officials said.
Link (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/09/18/nirq18.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/09/18/ixportaltop.html)
By Sean Rayment, Defence Correspondent
(Filed: 18/09/2005)
Secret plans by the Government to reduce troop numbers in Iraq have been shelved - and there is now no official date for the withdrawal of British soldiers, The Sunday Telegraph has learnt.
The decision comes as ministers prepare to announce an unexpected redeployment of up to 6,000 members of the 7th Armoured Brigade - the renowned Desert Rats - in the conflict zone next month. This follows growing concerns that Iraq is heading into full-scale civil war.
The 7th Armoured Brigade will return to Iraq next month
Under the original withdrawal plans of John Reid, the Defence Secretary, up to 8,500 troops should have returned to Britain by next month with the rest coming home by the middle of next year.
But the confirmation of a new large-scale troop redeployment, and the news that there is no end-date for British withdrawal, have sparked fears among serving soldiers and senior military figures that Iraq may be developing into Britain's own "Vietnam".
Last night, senior officers accused the Government of having a "head-in-the-sand mentality" over Britain's defence requirements and its involvement in Iraq, where more than 200 civilians were killed in terrorists attack last week alone. They said the Army - which is also sending 3,000 extra troops to Afghanistan next April - was under-manned, "strapped for cash" and being "dangerously overstretched".
So far, operations in Iraq are estimated to have cost Britain £5 billion and, since the American-led invasion in 2003, 95 British troops have been killed there.
The redeployment of the Desert Rats, who fought in the 2003 battle for Basra, in southern Iraq, contradicts a plan drawn up two months ago by Mr Reid, Options for UK Force Posture in Iraq, which proposed the start of a troop pull-out next month.
The government document added that the planned reductions would save £500 million a year.
Last night, Admiral Sir Michael Boyce, the head of the armed services from 2001 to 2003, said he was concerned that Britain's Forces were being constantly asked to do more with less.
"If we want to remain a global force for good around the world, it seems strange that the Armed Forces are not being properly funded … the MoD is strapped for cash" he said.
One serving brigadier, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the danger of Britain becoming bogged down in its own "Vietnam war" was getting stronger every day. "The return of the 7th Armoured Brigade to Iraq is a significant benchmark," he said.
"There is a real head-in-the-sand mentality as to how we're going to extricate ourselves from this mess. There is no endgame to the problems in Iraq."
Andrew Robathan, a Tory defence spokesman who served in the SAS for five years, said: "The Army is overstretched and under-manned. Iraq is a mess … and thousands of soldiers will be sent to Afghanistan next year. And the MoD is still bent on cutting four infantry battalions."
A Ministry of Defence spokesman confirmed that the 7th Armoured Brigade would return to Iraq next month. He added: "There are no plans now or in the future to withdraw troops from Iraq. It is all dependent on the security situation."
• Thirty people were killed and 38 wounded in a car bomb explosion last night at a market in Nahrawan, a predominantly Shiite suburb south of Baghdad, Iraqi security officials said.
Link (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/09/18/nirq18.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/09/18/ixportaltop.html)