Brown tells Karzai to sort out corruption or else...
But Opposition accuses Prime minister of sending 'mixed messages'
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Gordon Brown delivering aspeech to the Royal College of Defence Studies yesterday, explaining Britain?s position in the war
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Gordon Brown issued a stark warning to the Afghan President Hamid Karzai that Britain will not continue to put its forces "in harm's way" in his country unless he is prepared to root out corruption.
The Prime Minister sought to combat growing hostility among the British public to the mission in Afghanistan by making clear the operation depended on a new approach from the newly re-elected President Karzai. He warned him he would lose the right to the international community's support unless he made progress towards meeting five tests on governance, security, reconciliation, economic development and relations with Pakistan.
However, the Tories accused Mr Brown of sending "mixed messages" because he insisted Britain would not "walk away" while hinting that its troops would be pulled back or withdrawn unless the tests are met. Downing Street denied that the Prime Minister was contemplating defeat in Afghanistan or threatening a troop withdrawal. A more likely scenario is withdrawing support for President Karzai.
Mr Brown's spokesman said: "We have no intention of withdrawing troops from Afghanistan until we have completed our campaign. We expect he will be able to deliver on the five tests. We are planning for success in this strategy."
Number 10 said the Afghan President had accepted the tests in three telephone calls with Mr Brown this week. The Prime Minister is trying to show leadership on the issue as Nato allies await President Barack Obama's long-delayed decision on whether to send a further 40,000 troops to Afghanistan.
But Mr Brown came under further pressure when the House of Lords debated Afghanistan yesterday, as news of Thursday's latest casualty, that of Sgt Phillip Scott of The Third Battalion The Rifles, was disclosed. General Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank, a former Chief of the Defence Staff, accused him of "dithering" over his promise to send 500 extra troops to the country and said the Government had failed to provide adequate numbers of helicopters to prevent the loss of British lives.
He warned: "The people on the frontline, are beginning to question whether the Government is really really committed to making progress in Afghanistan".
Lord Inge, another former defence chief, said the delay in Washington and London over more troops was " sending a very bad message". He said: "We need clear direction and not hesitant leadership. The armed forces in particular need to know that they have the nation's support and they have confidence in their political direction and that they are not fighting and risking their lives for nothing."
Addressing the Royal College of Defence Studies in London, Mr Brown said that as long as al-Qa'ida continued to plot attacks on Britain from the region, Britain "cannot, must not and will not walk away".
Declaring that the Afghan Government had become "a byword for corruption", he warned: "I am not prepared to put the lives of British men and women in harm's way for a government that does not stand up against corruption." He called for the appointment of an international "anti-corruption czar" to advise the Kabul administration, along with an anti-corruption commission and special crimes tribunal. Acknowledging criticism that the mission has not been explained to voters, Mr Brown said: "What people here in Britain ask for is the same as our forces on the ground ask for – a clear sense of what success in Afghanistan would look like, and how we will get there.
"My answer is: we will have succeeded when our troops are coming home because the Afghans are providing security themselves, continuing the essential work of denying the territory of Afghanistan as a base for terrorists."
Liam Fox, the shadow Defence Secretary, accused Mr Brown of confusing military goals with governance and human rights issues which, although linked, were different. "He was right to say you cannot walk away – and if you cannot walk away that's it", he said. "We want to see the Karzai Government dealing with corruption but remember where the Karzai Government is... corruption is endemic in that part of the world. It will take a long time for people to turn round how they carry out their affairs."
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Comments
.... then we'll un-invade you!"
The Caledonian Clown gets funnier with every idiotic remark he makes.
Hey, give the bloke a chance.
How do you know that Karzai didn't come away from that 'phone call shaking in his boots?
After all, wasn't it Mr Brown who sorted out our own corrupt, thieving politicians, some of whom had to repay a proportion of their ill-gotten gains?
I suspect, that at this very moment Karzai is ridding himself of all his bent staff and relatives while promoting saintly innocents willing to refuse bribes and drugs. Watch this space!
In 2006 the Saudis threatened to withhold intelligence if Britain did not stop investigation of bribes paid to Saudi royalty by arms company BAE. Tony Blair stopped the investigation.
The United States threatened to cut off intelligence cooperation if Britain published secret information that showed a terror suspect had been tortured, Brown caved in.
All Karzai's Afghan allies have to do is threaten to stop sharing intelligence on the Taliban and Al Qaeda if he investigates corruption measures,and then what can Brown do?
Karzai's best weapon would probably be the withold heroine supplies to the West if he really wanted to play dirty, but we all know Karzai is a puppet of the international oil industry (which he came from), so the whole thing in nothing but empty rhetoric, as per ususal from any of the muiltitude of bought-and-paid-for politicians currently in power.
I think you need to sort out your own corrupt government first and its corrupt parliamentary democracy. We will soon find out what back handers you have been getting when you get voted out next year and see what big corporation or country offers you the big money for all those after dinner speeches Just like Tony. Of course a place in the lords wouldn’t be snubbed either I am sure. As for Afghan corruption
WE CONTANTLY AS A NATION THROW STONES WHILST LIVING IN A GLASS HOUSE. WAKE PEOPLE AND MAYBE JUST MAYBE IF WE SPREAD A LITTLE LOVE INSTEAD OF HATE IT MIGHT,,,, JUST MIGHT STOP BITTING US ON THE BACKSIDE
PEOPLE OF THE UK TAKE YOUR COUNTRY BACK FROM THESE SNIVVLING POLITICAL ELITE. AND I AM NOT BEING PARY POLITICAL HERE SOD THE LOT OF EM. HEY NICK AND DAVE U LISTENING
HOUNORABLE MY A*****
In every 3rd world country, corruption starts with the President. He (or she) runs a tight ship, with monthly revenue targets for every police and customs post and for every ministry.
Brown knows this (or he should) - so why doesnt he tell the British People, who fund his Government and their unpopular foreign adventures? Maybe he thinks his people are fools (maybe they are).
Mr Alex Weir, Baghdad and Harare
I am almost effing well speechless!!!
So how does that work?
Does that mean you are going to stop training his army and his police force?
They are his, are they not?
Shame, because that was your way out the other day.
Keep digging, China is not that far away.
Then the US was supposed to holding the line against communist expansion, and argued if they didn't prop up the corrupt government of South Vietnam the whole of South-East Asia would fall to communism - the so-called domino effect.
Fast forward 40 years and we are told we must stay and prop up corrupt Afghan government otherwise the floodgates of terror will visit our city streets. The US mission failed in Vietnam at huge cost in lives but the domino effect never happened. And I for one don't believe the Afghan conflict will make much difference one way or another to terror on our streets.
We need to do two things. Firstly, we need an exit strategy. Tying ourselves to th Karzai government spells disaster. We shouldn't send any more troops to prop him up. Secondly, we need to get the politics right.
The root cause of our problems with terror is our attitude to Islam. We are simply too confrontational and don't make any attempt to separate mainstream Islam from the lunatic fringe that seems to accompany any religion including our own. We prop up corrupt regimes in places like Eygpt and Saudi Arabia and harrass the Palestinians whose main "crime" is to protest as their land is taken by Israel in illegal settlements.
In short, our policies are making enemies, and those policies can't be reconciled with promoting "peace and democracy" while we turn a blind eye to terror and torture perpetrated by people whom our government supports. It sends out mixed messages and it is ultimately self-defeating.
Our troops are fighting and dying in a war that is based on a false prospectus and it is a conflict we can't win. Many Afghans I'm sure see us as intruders and are fighting for their homeland. We don't live in Afghanistan and have no intention of doing so. Why are we poking our noses in, and supporting a corrupt regime?
I've always thought George Bush's war on terror was a huge mistake. President Obama has been left with an awful dilemma. And in being a US poodle for the years of the Bush Presidency it is our dilemma too. We're in an awful hole, and the sensible thing would be to stop digging. Gordon Brown can't get out because he's too heavily implicated, and I suspect the Tories wouldn't either because they did nothing to oppose war either in Afghanistan or Iraq - quite the contrary.
Will all politicians who are in favour of finding an exit strategy, and sooner rather than later, please come forward. Your country needs you.
These troops were part of a reduction in the Iraq presence - it was previously thought that they would be coming home.
It was the US that put us into Helmund, to fill the vacuum they created by getting out of the area.
Maybe they should follow the EU model of democracy where you don't get elections and high offices (e.g. the President) is selected through back office horse trading and under the counter bargaining and secret handshakes. Somebody who then comes out of this mystical process is then appointed - no electorate getting any vote, no public getting any say. Sounds like that would suit Khazi.
The man appointed has been proven as election fraud.
He is not wort a sigle life.If 95% of Afghanswant freedomlet them wrestle Taleban for opiium profits.
If the US wants to box in Iran its their busness.
Where arethe troops of big countries India Brazil Russia and Japan to defend democracy
Why is 80 million of wealthy Germany doing so little?
Where are weallthy Gulf neighbours helping democracy and womens rights or funding the Al Qaeda I fyou wish to stop it rund up the Wahabis deport allPakistanis and raze the training areas or shut up and try the withdrawal method if USA allows.
Captain Chaos could learn lessons from his Afghanistani counterpart, at least Karzai pretends to hold elections.
Brown and many of his cronies in cabinet have been promoted far above their own competence levels and are way out of their depth. What are they going to do if Karzai does not clean up his act and anyway, how are they going to verify if he has done so. It is all hot air and what is most galling, Brown obviously thinks the British public are fools although I suppose many must be if they still vote for this useless man and his party. Unfortunately it is all a class thing and many would still vote Labour if a donkey was in charge. Why is it many of the most deprived areas in the UK have been run by Labour controlled councils for decades with very little improvement in the residents lifesyles and surroundings but these mugs still vote Labour.
I thought we were in Afghanistan to stop Al Qaeda but all Al -Qaeda are now in the Pakistan border areas and we are fighting the Taliban who have no interest in terrorising the UK and are only interested in ruling Afghanistan. This tired justification about stopping terrorists returning to UK streets is rubbish. Most of the UK terrorist outrages are home grown and whilst they may get verbal backing and encouragement from Al Qaeda , Al Qaeda does not have to be in Aghanistan to do this. What about Somalia etc. Are we going to invade any country on the pretext they may be plotting against us. Unfortunately we are currently governed by lowly incompetent politicians who have not got the guts to stand up and admit when they are wrong and do the right thing. We desparately need some Statesmen to run this country who put their countries interest in front of their own parochial political aims and ambitions.
You and your boss wanted to bring democracy to Iraq by invading the country. You started the war with the boss of your boss knowing that the majority of the British are against it. Your understanding of democracy is strange.
Get out of the Bush wars and do your job right at home
Puppets with taut strings do as they are told. Karzai has rubber strings, so he may or may not do as he is told.
Just clamp down on his mega Swiss bank account and bring him back in line. Puppets must be disciplined.
What I find more laughable is that Brown thinks that what he says matters. Just like Karzai, he is another of America's compliant puppets. He has no say in anything. His sole role is to do America's bidding by slavishly supporting it at the UN and in Europe and sending British troops to get killed trying to defend a corrupt regime.