UK looking to sack Afghan military commanders to save money
Image via WikipediaThe commanding officers of all three Para battalions received letters telling them they were “in the zone for possible redundancy”. One officer heard the news only hours after returning from a patrol fighting the Taliban.There is more.
A similar letter was sent to the officer in line to become the next head of Britain’s Special Forces. He fought with the SAS in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The three Para commanders are completing six-month tours in Afghanistan, where one has been shot by insurgents. Another is likely to be decorated for leadership in combat.
The prospect of sacking the Army’s most experienced combat commanders led to warnings that military morale would suffer and intensified the Coalition’s political embarrassment over defence cuts.
More than 3,500 Armed Forces personnel will be made redundant in September. Ministers had promised that no one serving in Afghanistan at the time would be sacked, but hundreds of personnel currently on the front line are eligible for redundancy.
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This is not a good move and it demonstrates a lack of appreciation for the sacrifices these troops have already made. The Brit defense cuts have always looked irresponsible to me. They can barely meet their NATO obligations in Libya and they will have difficulty meeting their obligations in Afghanistan in the fulture.
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