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Post by Frenchie on Sept 17, 2009 22:07:55 GMT 1
The British army's new commander said on Thursday that Western forces in Afghanistan had the ingredients to defeat the Taliban but must still find the right formula. In his first major speech since taking over as chief of the general staff last month, General David Richards described the Taliban as a ruthless foe who ranged from hardline Islamists to drug barons and tribal chiefs but with popular support. "This is not some Che Guevara-like band of popular freedom fighters," he said, referring to the Argentinean guerrilla who was Fidel Castro's lieutenant in the Cuban Revolution. "Their leaders are ruthless fanatics who will stoop to anything in the pursuit of power, readily killing by design children and women in order to terrorise communities." The Islamist group, ousted from power in late 2001, has regained strength over the past two years and stepped up action across Afghanistan. But Richards, speaking to an audience of diplomats and military officers at Chatham House, a foreign affairs think-tank, said the war would be won eventually. "Let me remind you that most of you only 18 months ago had written Iraq off: a disaster, about to implode," he said. "Yet today, most are cautiously optimistic. We knew the ingredients for success but it took us time to discover the correct formula. The ingredients for success in Afghanistan are similar, but we have not yet confirmed the correct formula for that country." Continued........>>
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