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A journalist in today’s Times wrote an article saying just how unpopular Gordon Brown is with the troops in Afghanistan: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article6815545.ece

Gordon Brown deserves to be despised by the Military, he is a poor Prime Minister but more importantly as Chancellor, he refused to fund our Armed Forces properly preferring to spend money on his “pet projects”. He only took an interest in building Aircraft Carriers because it would mean jobs in Scotland which might support the Labour vote there, he has no appreciation of whether they should be built from a Military perspective.

Regardless of Political Party

It is important that the Military despise all politicians of whatever Party, it is essential to the very way they operate as “Soldiers of the Queen” rather than the creatures of the grubby inhabitants of the Village of Westminster, whoever they might be at the time.

However politicians too have a value and the greatest service that Brown could do to this Country and our Armed Forces is to call a General Election so that President Obama can have a new British Government with a 5 year mandate so that future decisions can be made now. Brown with a maximum 9 months left, a Government that is totally stalled and little chance of being re-elected, is now a stumbling block to progress.

The Cross Roads

The Afghanistan Mission is now reaching a critical cross roads and things will not continue as they have up until now for too far into the future.

The Afghanistan deployment is losing public support in both the US and the UK, the two nations doing most of the fighting and taking most of the casualties. The all too obvious flawed Presidential Election with it’s widespread corruption and ballot rigging, of itself calls the whole mission into question and President Obama’s aim of getting some kind of progress by the American Mid-Terms, is unlikely and like it or not, a decision time approaches.

Although an immediate withdrawal is unlikely, the aims could be radically reduced and a likely exit within 2-3 years on an Army and Police training target but with a not too subtle NATO emphasis on strengthening Pakistan.

British Interests

Brown should do the Patriotic Thing and go to let Cameron and his team get to grips with the issues as quickly as possible. If a pull out was decided upon – whatever its called, “The Accelerated Afghan Training Mission, the American President would need a UK Prime Minister standing beside him in the Rose garden to support the decision and confirm that it is a pragmatic political decision based upon the best interests of the Afghan people, rather than a retreat by NATO.

In a strategic assessment yet to be made public, apparently Gen Stanley McChrystal said that, while the Afghan situation was serious, success was still achievable but only by a change of direction. Frankly the choices are limited; Pour in a lot more troops for a 2-3 year period to train up an increased in numbers, Afghan Army or, pull out but the latter would not help us in the UK, our biggest threat in that region comes from Pakistan.