Category Archives: Military

Britain’s military must learn from its mistakes

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Britain’s armed forces are dodging responsibility for failings in Afghanistan and Iraq, argues Prof Paul Dixon. RC Pennington fears military history is doomed to repeat itself. Plus letters from Margaret Phelps, Diana Francis and Jim Golcher

Simon Akam is right, the military does want to ignore its failure in Afghanistan (Britain’s military will want to ignore its failure in Afghanistan. It must face reality, 22 August), but it does so by deflecting responsibility on to the politicians.

There is also a strong reluctance to publish books and articles that are critical of the military, even by those who served. All three books cited by Akam are by journalists who are ex-military.

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UK scrambles to complete Kabul airlift as envoy flags risk of provoking Taliban

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Exclusive: Britain’s ambassador to Afghanistan says continuing evacuations after 31 August could spark reaction from militants

Britain has begun a last-ditch scramble to get people out of Kabul amid warnings from the senior diplomat on the ground that staying past the current 31 August deadline may not be realistic and risks provoking the Taliban.

Speaking to MPs from Kabul, Sir Laurie Bristow, Britain’s ambassador to Afghanistan, said trying to hold Kabul’s airport any longer would be fraught with risk. He was speaking before Tuesday’s G7 meeting, which is expected to discuss a request from the prime minister, Boris Johnson, to the US president, Joe Biden, to stay longer.

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Nosedive in UK-US relations is another casualty of Afghanistan’s fall

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Ministers are becoming openly critical of Joe Biden after being left in the dark about major decisions

So much for the special relationship. As the Afghanistan crisis has unfolded, it has precipitated a high-speed deterioration in Anglo-American relations.

What began as a muted disagreement on whether it was right for the US to withdraw militarily has reached the point where UK government sources are openly briefing against President Joe Biden as the situation in Kabul worsens.

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Gauntlet to reach Kabul airport taking evacuees 24 to 48 hours

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Fear of Taliban roadblocks slows flow of people trying to flee Afghanistan on fifth day of RAF airlift operation

People fleeing the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan for safety in Britain are taking 24 to 48 hours to make it safely across Kabul for evacuation – and many have turned back home, scared to travel, defence sources have acknowledged.

Difficulties in getting the remaining Britons, Afghans and others to the airport became the most significant hurdle on the fifth day of the RAF airlift amid renewed speculation over whether it will last to the end of the month as planned.

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Boris Johnson struggles to justify Afghanistan stance to hostile MPs

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Analysis: PM fails to make convincing defence of foreign policy amid criticism from across the Commons

Other leaders have had the luxury of being able to deliver an uninterrupted televised address. But Boris Johnson had to justify the ignominious retreat from Afghanistan in front of a testy, and at times hostile, House of Commons – dominated by critics from his own side asking if Britain could have been better prepared and if the collapse of the Kabul government could have been averted.

It was an occasion the UK prime minister struggled to rise to, not helped by the format that Downing Street had opted for: a general debate, which meant MPs were allowed to rise and seek to intervene as Johnson spoke, generating a crescendo of background noise after he had completed a line or two.

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‘Where is global Britain on streets of Kabul?’: Theresa May blasts UK failure in Afghanistan – video

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The former prime minister Theresa May has suggested her successor, Boris Johnson, had hoped 'on a wing and a prayer it’d be all right on the night' once the US and its allies had withdrawn from Afghanistan.

Johnson has faced anger from MPs about the UK’s failure to prepare for the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, as he made the case in parliament that Britain could not have stayed in the country 'without American might'

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‘Some won’t get back’: UK defence secretary chokes up over Afghanistan – video

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The UK defence secretary has admitted 'some people will not get back' as Britain tries to evacuate Afghan allies from Kabul, along with its own citizens, with British forces aiming to repatriate more than 1,000 people a day. Ben Wallace appeared to hold back tears as he spoke to LBC radio about the effort to repatriate Britons and process visas for Afghan interpreters and other staff following the Taliban takeover

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UK and US send troops to aid evacuation from Afghanistan as Taliban advance

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Pentagon aims to send in 3,000 soldiers to ‘aid reduction’ of nationals and Afghans with visas

The US and UK have scrambled reinforcements to Kabul to help evacuate their diplomats, soldiers and citizens as well as thousands of Afghans who have worked with them, as the Taliban advance towards the capital.

The Pentagon announced it would send three battalions, about 3,000 soldiers, to Kabul’s international airport within 24 to 48 hours of the announcement on Thursday. The defence department spokesman, John Kirby, said the reinforcements would help the “safe and orderly reduction” of US nationals and Afghans who worked with the Americans and consequently had been granted special immigrant visas.

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UK says it has no plans for South China Sea confrontation after Beijing warning

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Naval strike group is sailing through waters heavily contested between China and neighbouring countries

Britain has said it has no plans to stage a naval confrontation with China in the South China Sea and that it aims to send its carrier strike group in the most direct route across the contested body of water from Singapore to the Philippine Sea.

The cooling message emerged hours after China’s military and state media warned the UK against provocation as the group, led by Royal Navy aircraft carrier Queen Elizabeth, undertakes what had been expected to be a more assertive deployment.

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Two-thirds of women in UK military report bullying and sexual abuse

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Landmark parliamentary report features evidence of gang rape, sex for career advancement and trophies to ‘bag the woman’

Almost two-thirds of women in the armed forces have experienced bullying, sexual harassment and discrimination during their career, according to a parliamentary report that says the UK military is “failing to protect” female recruits.

Heralding its inquiry into the treatment of women in the armed forces as one of the most vital in its history, the defence subcommittee said 62% of the 4,106 veterans and current female personnel who gave testimony had either witnessed or received “unacceptable behaviour”.

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UK confirms plan to call time on Troubles prosecutions

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Proposals to end prosecutions relating to Troubles before 1998 opposed by Irish government

All criminal prosecutions relating to the Troubles and future attempts to take civil actions would be blocked under UK government plans that have united Northern Ireland’s parties in opposition.

The proposals, which are also opposed by the Irish government, were announced by Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland secretary, who told MPs it was a “painful truth” that criminal investigations were unlikely to deliver successful outcomes.

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Paratrooper whose parachute failed to open survives after crashing into house

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British soldier falls through roof of California house, crashing into the kitchen in a burst of insulation and roofing material

A British paratrooper whose parachute failed to open correctly sustained only “minor injuries” after a 15,000ft fall took him through the roof of a house in California, crashing into the kitchen in a burst of insulation and roofing material.

The soldier, who was not immediately named, jumped out of a plane during a High Altitude Low Opening (Halo) exercise, a technique used by special forces. He lost control as he approached the ground near Camp Roberts, in Atascadero.

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British army identifies serious failings over soldier’s death – reports

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Body of L/Cpl Bernard Mongan, who had complained of bullying, lay undiscovered for three weeks

The British army has identified serious failings in its handling of the death of a soldier whose body lay undiscovered at a base for three weeks, according to reports.

L/Cpl Bernard Mongan, who had made bullying allegations and reportedly tried to kill himself in 2016, was discovered in his barracks in Catterick, North Yorkshire, on 23 January last year.

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Fijian-born soldiers given right to live in UK despite legal battle loss

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‘Moral victory’ claimed by veterans’ lawyers as Ministry of Defence grants indefinite leave to remain

A group of Fijian-born soldiers who sued the government after being classified as illegal immigrants have been granted leave to remain in the UK, despite losing their legal battle against the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the Home Office.

Seven of the group, who claimed they were the victims of serious and systemic administrative mistakes because they were not properly advised on how to claim the right to stay legally in the UK after completing their service, have now been granted indefinite leave to remain, and a final applicant is expected to receive the status imminently.

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Boris Johnson announces end to UK military mission in Afghanistan – video

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Boris Johnson has announced the end of Britain’s military mission in Afghanistan, following a hasty and secretive exit of the last remaining troops 20 years after the post-9/11 invasion that started the 'war on terror'. Speaking in the Commons, the prime minister confirmed to MPs that the intervention, which claimed the lives of 457 British soldiers, would end even as the insurgent Taliban have been rapidly gaining territory in rural areas as UK and other forces withdraw

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Troubles trials: why did they collapse, and what happens next?

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Decision to halt prosecution for murder of two British veterans is likely to affect other cases

Why have prosecutors dropped Troubles-era murder charges against former soldiers who served in Northern Ireland?

A technicality, and a whole lot of history, lie behind Friday’s decision to halt the prosecution of two veterans. Soldier F had been charged with two murders and five attempted murders during Bloody Sunday in Derry in January 1972. Soldier B was charged with killing a teenager in the city in July 1972.

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Classified Ministry of Defence papers found at bus stop in Kent

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Documents include details on HMS Defender in Ukrainian waters and possible Afghanistan plans

Classified defence documents containing details about HMS Defender and the military have been found at a bus stop, prompting an investigation from the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The loss of the sensitive information was described “as embarrassing as it is worrying for ministers” by Labour, who are seeking reassurances that national security has not been undermined.

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Britain acknowledges surprise at speed of Russian reaction to warship

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Kremlin summons UK ambassador as Boris Johnson says HMS Defender’s deployment ‘wholly appropriate’

British officials acknowledged they were taken by surprise by the speed of the Russian reaction to HMS Defender’s 36-minute passage through Crimean waters on Wednesday as the British ambassador to Moscow was summoned to the Kremlin.

Although a Russian response to the Royal Navy warship’s passage within the 12-mile territorial limit was anticipated, the UK Ministry of Defence did not expect the Kremlin to speedily declare that warning shots had been fired.

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UK-Russian naval dispute: both sides will claim victory

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Analysis: Royal Navy ship sailing near Crimea may also be test of Beijing reaction to territorial reach

British ministers will have been under no illusions that the decision to sail HMS Defender into disputed waters off the coast of Russian-annexed Crimea would provoke a reaction from the Kremlin.

A dispute about whether warning shots were fired or not is beside the point – although if they were, they were miles out of range. Because even if the west considers Crimea, annexed by Moscow in 2014, to be still part of Ukraine, the Russians do not and will act accordingly.

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