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British troops to have wider Afghan role: Hoon
British troops to be deployed in Afghanistan will have more than just a peacekeeping role, the British defence secretary Geoff Hoon said.
British troops to be deployed in Afghanistan will have more than just a peacekeeping role, the British defence secretary Geoff Hoon said.
This goes beyond peacekeeping, and I assure you that any British forces deployed will have robust rules of engagement to ensure their own safety, Hoon told BBC radio.
This comes the day after Prime Minister Tony Blair told Parliament that Britain stood ready to commit up to 1,500 British troops to a UN-mandated security force in Afghanistan.
Hoon reiterated Blair's statement that the first elements of the British contribution to the multi-national force could be in Kabul by Saturday.
I certainly don't anticipate that the full force could be there by the weekend, but equally I would have thought that it is not unrealistic to think about at least some elements of the force arriving by December 22, he said.
The defence secretary said he anticipated a new United Nations Security Council resolution to mandate the force by the end of the week. The British force would have rules of engagement which would allow its members to protect themselves, he stressed.
As far as time is concerned, our expectation is that this will be a time limited operation, we are talking a small number of months rather than an open-ended commitment, Hoon added.
In Kabul, a military reconnaissance team, led by British major general John McColl, was winding up its mission after meeting key figures in the new interim administration.
Bureau Report
This comes the day after Prime Minister Tony Blair told Parliament that Britain stood ready to commit up to 1,500 British troops to a UN-mandated security force in Afghanistan.
Hoon reiterated Blair's statement that the first elements of the British contribution to the multi-national force could be in Kabul by Saturday.
I certainly don't anticipate that the full force could be there by the weekend, but equally I would have thought that it is not unrealistic to think about at least some elements of the force arriving by December 22, he said.
The defence secretary said he anticipated a new United Nations Security Council resolution to mandate the force by the end of the week. The British force would have rules of engagement which would allow its members to protect themselves, he stressed.
As far as time is concerned, our expectation is that this will be a time limited operation, we are talking a small number of months rather than an open-ended commitment, Hoon added.
In Kabul, a military reconnaissance team, led by British major general John McColl, was winding up its mission after meeting key figures in the new interim administration.
Bureau Report