Key questions asked and mission clarity requested.
Today in the House of Commons, the Speaker granted John Baron MP an Urgent Question (UQ) – this allows MPs to raise issues of concern at short notice, and involves the appropriate Secretary of State answering those concerns at the dispatch box. John raised reports of NATO’s change in strategy which has suspended joint on-the-ground operations until further notice.
John said:
“The decision by NATO to suspend joint operations appears to have taken the UK Government by surprise. Only yesterday in Parliament, the Defence Secretary defended NATO’s continued work with Afghan troops on the ground. When did the UK Government know of this decision, and were we consulted?”
“This announcement threatens to blow a hole in our exit strategy, which is reliant on these joint operations to train Afghan forces to operate independently following ISAF’s withdrawal. Where does this announcement leave our exit strategy?”
“For those of us who opposed our involvement in Afghanistan, this adds to the confusion regarding our mission. Last week the DFID Secretary talked of nation building. At the same time, the Defence Secretary said it would be wrong to risk the lives of our troops for nation building. Which view prevails in Government?”
“And if we are remaining true to our original mission of eliminating al-Qaeda from Afghanistan – this having been achieved many years ago – should the Americans not be holding non-conditional talks with the Taliban in order to explore possible common ground, given their differences with al-Qaeda.”
In response the Defence Secretary denied that this had been a major change in strategy.
John Baron will not post replies to any comments - to contact John please Click here or alternatively for a full list of contact details Click here