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Brown defends Afghan strategy as deaths mount
AFP - Sunday, July 12
LONDON (AFP) - - Prime Minister Gordon Brown insisted on Saturday that Downing Street had the right strategy in Afghanistan after British military deaths surpassed the number of dead in the Iraq war.
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Brown said the last few days had been "extraordinarily difficult" as British fatalities had risen to 184 after the announcement on Friday that eight men had been killed in a 24-hour period.
But he said troops were winning the battle against Taliban insurgents in their heartlands of Helmand in southern Afghanistan.
"While I know there are some who have questioned our strategy, I continue to believe our strategy is the right one," Brown wrote in a letter to MPs.
"I can report the assessment of commanders on the ground: that the current operations are succeeding in their objectives.
"They are having a marked impact on the Taliban in central Helmand, will improve security for the population in the run-up to the elections, and will allow longer-term work on governance and development to begin."
In a coordinated government attempt to boost waning support for the conflict as casualties rise, Foreign Secretary David Miliband said that troops in Afghanistan were locked in a battle "for the future of Britain".
Miliband said Britain would not be secure until it had established security in Afghanistan and it was vital to prevent the country again becoming an "incubator for terrorism" and a launch pad for attacks on the West.
"This is about the future of Britain because we know that the badlands of Afghanistan and Pakistan -- that border area -- have been used to launch terrible attacks, not just on the United States, but on Britain as well.
"We know that until we can ensure there is a modicum of stability and security provided by Afghan forces for their own people, we are not going to be able to be secure in our own country."
A total of 15 British soldiers have died in 10 days in southern Afghanistan as troops carry out Operation Panchai Palang, or Panther's Claw, in Helmand.
The aim of the operation is to improve security ahead of next month's Afghan elections. Britain has raised its troop numbers to 9,000 ahead of the vote.
The head of the military, Air Chief Marshal Jock Stirrup, insisted the Taliban were losing the fight.
"It's tough going because the Taliban have rightly identified Helmand as their vital ground," Stirrup said on Friday.
"If they lose there then they lose everywhere and they are throwing everything they have into it. But they are losing and our commanders on the ground are very clear of that," he said.
"But it's going to take time and, alas, it does involve casualties."
The majority of British deaths in recent months were caused by powerful roadside bombs laid by insurgents, raising concerns that troops are forced to use lightly armoured vehicles which fail to resist the blasts.
Brown said he was aware of "particular concerns over vehicles" but argued that Downing Street had spent one billion pounds in the past three years on heavily armoured Mastiff vehicles "which offer world-leading protection against mines and roadside bombs".
But the parents of an 18-year-old killed there accused the government of failing to give forces the resources they need.
Trevor and Jane Ford, whose son Private Ben Ford died in an explosion two years ago, said on BBC radio: "How much money do we need to throw at other things in this country before we realise the armed forces need that cash?
"What is Gordon Brown doing? Is he just sitting there counting his own money and leaving us to just dwindle along?"
The Stop the War coalition has announced an emergency protest in London on Monday, calling for troops to be withdrawn from Afghanistan after the recent heavy losses.
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