From: Adam 

Firstly a little pastiche of the British Army

http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=47759

Dead soldier was a Fijian serving in a Irish Regiment in the British Army.
How little things change.


Meanwhile:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1865102,00.html

The mil view:

"Warnings in a Guardian interview by General Sir Richard Dannatt, the
new head of Britain's army, that his troops could only just cope with the
demands placed on them, prompted widespread comment yesterday as defence
officials admitted that the situation in Afghanistan was worse than
military commanders had anticipated. "What has changed is the security
environment," said one defence official. As a result, British troops
were taking on a "more active role than predicted".

In his interview in yesterday's Guardian, Gen Dannatt warned: "We are
running hot, certainly running hot. Can we cope? I pause. I say
'Just'." He said the UK was doing "more than its share of what is
required in Afghanistan". He also called for a national debate about
how much money should be spent on defence."


The pol view:

"The Foreign Office minister Kim Howells, visiting Afghanistan
yesterday, also urged Britain's Nato allies to make a bigger contribution.
But he told the BBC that British commanders on the ground were "very
confident they have got the resources to do the job they are there to
do"."

Gee I wonder which is the lying toad.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/military/story/0,,1844099,00.html

"Unprecedented pressure on the army is forcing it to make cuts leading
to "severe impediment to the delivery of operational capability",
according to a confidential report sent to one of the country's top
generals.

New missile systems will be delayed and old ones withdrawn from service,
exercises will have to be cancelled or postponed, and military bases will
have to be closed, it says.

The report was drawn up for General Sir Richard Dannatt, commander in chief
of Land Command, responsible for ensuring the army gets the equipment it
needs. It says that cuts of more than œ40m are needed to ease the pressure
on the defence budget. Gen Dannatt is to become chief of the general staff
- the head of the army - when General Sir Mike Jackson retires at the end
of this month.

Funding for a long-range multiple-launched rocket system - widely used by
the US army - will be frozen, creating a 30-month capability gap. Existing
missile systems will be withdrawn from service early, leaving a 24-month
capability gap.

The report says stockpiling of ammunition for the army's Apache
helicopters, in use in Afghanistan, will be reduced, and that the
construction of a security fence at the Army Air Corps' Apache regiment, at
Dishforth, North Yorkshire, has had to be cancelled. The future of the base
is under review.

The report, Financial Management 2006/7, also says repair budgets for the
army's tanks and artillery systems will be cut. It describes this as a
"high impact" measure, and warns that the cost-cutting will cause
"some pain".

Rising costs of fuel, electricity and water will mean military bases will
have to close, leading to "severe impediment to the delivery of
operational capability".

Military exercises in Canada and Kenya will have to be scaled down, a move
which the report says will lead to the loss of skills and undermine morale.
The measure will lead to the loss of skills in live firing in complex
terrain, it says.

Recruitment to the Territorial Army will also be slowed, the report says.

So pressed is the army's budget that senior officers have been asked to
organise their meetings in such a way that they can travel using
"saver" tickets."


Odddly the Top general seems to disagree with the treasury driven view
(guess who's angling to replace Blair.....)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0,,1864264,00.html

"In his first interview since taking up his post as chief of the
general staff, General Dannatt warned: "We are running hot, certainly
running hot." He added: "Can we cope? I pause. I say
'just'.""

"Speaking exclusively to the Guardian before Saturday's crash, Gen
Dannatt said British soldiers were not fighting the "fourth Afghan
war"
- a reference to past military disasters in the country. He said they
were in Afghanistan at the request of President Hamid Karzai and would be
there "for the long term".

On whether other Nato countries should contribute more, Gen Dannatt said
Britain was doing "more than its share of what is required in
Afghanistan".

Asked about suggestions that the 7,200-strong British force in Iraq could
be halved by the middle of next year, he stressed that that had been
described only as a "hope". Previous hopes about Iraq had not
been fulfilled, he pointed out. He also refused to set a timeframe for an
eventual British withdrawal from Afghanistan.

He said the army was "meeting challenges on the hoof". But it was
not for him to say whether the 5% of public spending (about œ30bn)
earmarked for defence - a figure he compared with the 29% spent on social
security
- was sufficient. "There is room for debate," he said.
"There should be
a national debate about whatever [is judged] enough.""


I vote for blowing the bugle in Basra. It's so nice & peaceful now that
even the US & Iraqi army can do the job.

BTW side issue from a mate who's part of the "general low morale"
brigade & is considering his options.....

He & his colleagues are getting only a 1 month break between
tours.......I know that may not mean much to the non-mil types here but one
f*cking month in blightly between deeply life-threatening tours is f**king
appalling. He has seen his family for 8 weeks in the last 1.5-2
years......"Hello little kiddie...I'm your daddie" sort of thing.

& people wonder why the older/experienced PBI are getting restless.

& yet...they are cutting the regiments in both numbers & size....ah the
wonders of an expansionist PM & a contractionist Chancellor with the
PBI acting as the rubber band.

Adam

--- BBBS/NT v4.01 Flag-5