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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Minister defends UK forces' kit | Minister defends UK forces' kit |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| The UK government has denied troops in Afghanistan are not properly equipped after it emerged a British officer criticised supplies before his death. | The UK government has denied troops in Afghanistan are not properly equipped after it emerged a British officer criticised supplies before his death. |
| Lt Col Rupert Thorneloe, 39, warned of a helicopter shortage in a memo before he died in a roadside bombing. | Lt Col Rupert Thorneloe, 39, warned of a helicopter shortage in a memo before he died in a roadside bombing. |
| In response, forces minister Bill Rammell said "no military chief" and "no minister" could guarantee against the loss of life. | In response, forces minister Bill Rammell said "no military chief" and "no minister" could guarantee against the loss of life. |
| Col Thorneloe is the most senior British officer killed in Afghanistan. | |
| Mr Rammell told the BBC that advice from the military was that troops did have enough helicopters for the Afghan campaign. | Mr Rammell told the BBC that advice from the military was that troops did have enough helicopters for the Afghan campaign. |
| "It is not an issue of ministers being unwilling to commit the resources. That is why we've significantly expanded the helicopter fleet - both in terms of numbers and flying hours and why more are coming," he said. | |
| The Ministry of Defence says additional Merlins are being deployed and more Chinooks will be sent during the coming year. | |
| Mr Rammell: "The idea we're not resourcing this operation is a million miles from the truth" | Mr Rammell: "The idea we're not resourcing this operation is a million miles from the truth" |
| "We do not commit troops, and the service chiefs will confirm this, if there is an unacceptable balance of risk," the minister said. | |
| But he added: "That cannot guarantee against the loss of life, because the Taliban have hugely increased their planting of improvised explosive devices. | But he added: "That cannot guarantee against the loss of life, because the Taliban have hugely increased their planting of improvised explosive devices. |
| "We cannot succeed in Afghanistan just in heavily-armoured vehicles or in helicopters. | "We cannot succeed in Afghanistan just in heavily-armoured vehicles or in helicopters. |
| "The military will tell you that to win hearts and minds you need boots on the ground - that entails a risk." | "The military will tell you that to win hearts and minds you need boots on the ground - that entails a risk." |
| 'Not fit for purpose' | 'Not fit for purpose' |
| Col Thorneloe, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, Welsh Guards, was killed on 1 July during Operation Panther's Claw, the offensive against insurgent strongholds in Helmand province. | Col Thorneloe, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, Welsh Guards, was killed on 1 July during Operation Panther's Claw, the offensive against insurgent strongholds in Helmand province. |
| Trooper Joshua Hammond also died when their convoy was hit by an improvised explosive device (IED) near Lashkar Gah. | Trooper Joshua Hammond also died when their convoy was hit by an improvised explosive device (IED) near Lashkar Gah. |
| In memos sent three weeks earlier and published in Saturday's Daily Mail, Col Thorneloe warned his brigade commanders in the UK about a shortage of helicopters in Helmand, and the increased risks posed to British troops. | |
| Adam Holloway: "There are not enough helicopters, and there never have been" | |
| "I have tried to avoid griping about helicopters - we all know we don't have enough," he wrote. | "I have tried to avoid griping about helicopters - we all know we don't have enough," he wrote. |
| "We cannot not move people, so this month we have conducted a great deal of administrative movement by road. | "We cannot not move people, so this month we have conducted a great deal of administrative movement by road. |
| "This increases the IED threat and our exposure to it." | "This increases the IED threat and our exposure to it." |
| Col Thorneloe, from Kirtlington, near Oxford, said he had "virtually no" helicopters of the type which would allow him to move troops by air rather than road. | Col Thorneloe, from Kirtlington, near Oxford, said he had "virtually no" helicopters of the type which would allow him to move troops by air rather than road. |
| He also termed the system used to manage helicopter movements in Afghanistan as "very clearly not fit for purpose". | He also termed the system used to manage helicopter movements in Afghanistan as "very clearly not fit for purpose". |
| Deployment 'inflexibility' | |
| Chief of the Defence Staff Sir Jock Stirrup said that while more helicopters would always help operations in Afghanistan, there had been sufficient numbers for this summer's operations. | |
| He said Col Thorneloe's comments related to the deployment of craft within Afghanistan. | |
| "The key element of criticism was inflexibility of allocating helicopter assets within theatre, which to Rupert didn't seem to make sense," said Sir Jock. | |
| "He was saying that if we allocated the helicopters in a different way, we would get more available." | |
| The memos from Col Thorneloe were leaked by an official to Tory MP Adam Holloway, a former officer. | |
| The MP said they showed the government "aren't taking this war seriously". | |
| "For the last three years we've been told constantly by the government that our guys have got enough helicopters to do the job," Mr Holloway said. | |
| "Anybody who's visited Afghanistan and spoken to the soldiers knows there simply aren't enough helicopters and there never have been." |