i Deputy Editor's Letter: Cameron's words sit uneasily with many of us

On 1 May 2003, President George W Bush landed on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln, posing for photographs with pilots and crew while wearing a flight suit.

A few hours later he stood among whooping airmen and soldiers to give a victory speech, proudly announcing the end of combat operations. He declared: “In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed”. Emblazoned in bold white letters over a stars and stripes banner, strung high on the bridge of the aircraft carrier, were the words “mission accomplished”.

We may be more than 10 years on from the infamous speech, but those words still sit uncomfortably for many in his administration, and cause anger around the world.

While not in the same league as that declaration, David Cameron’s assertion yesterday risks drawing the same response. Perhaps quickly realising his error, he qualified his answer, saying that a “basic level of security” had been established and that our troops could return home “with their heads held high”. But the parallels with that fateful speech had already been drawn. Granted, Cameron’s black fleece and navy chinos were no match for George W’s full combat gear, and the PM was not stood atop a Challenger tank, but the sentiment is broadly the same.

Coming so soon after the Afghan President Hamid Karzai said that there was only “partial” security on the ground, the comments may seem premature, not to mention inappropriate, to many. Let us hope that, as in the case since George W’s victory speech, those on the ground don’t face another decade of bombings and random attacks.

i@independent.co.uk

Twitter.com: @jonesrhodri