The UK Withdraws From The War In Afghanistan

The UK Withdraws From The War In Afghanistan
Britain has formally withdrawn from the war in Afghanistan ending 13 years of involvement in this region. The Union Flag at Camp Bastion was lowered during the end of the campaign. Britain’s involvement in the Afghan war is said to be the longest in any conflict in modern times, according to some estimates. The goal of the British armed forces was initially to curb illegal trade in opium in the country. But through the period of involvement, the focus of the forces changed with time and peacekeeping became imperative.

Around 453 British lives were lost during this 13 year period of involvement and many thousands were injured. Though the direct role of the United Kingdom in the combat has ended, it will continue to maintain an important presence there. Some hundred British troops will be deployed near the Qargha Officer Training Academy according to media reports. The forces will only be present to provide training to the Afghan National forces. A major role will continue to be played by the British in training Afghan forces for peacekeeping operations. The special forces will also continue to remain in this South east Asian nation for some time.

About Camp Bastion

Camp Bastion was the center of the UK operations in Afghanistan. It controlled over 136 bases in southern Afghanistan in the Helmand province. This camp also had a 11,500 feet runway making it easy for large transport planes to fly through. Bastion had one of the world’s busiest airports.

Several operations were also carried out at this base. Operation Herrick was the codename provided to British operations in Afghanistan since 2002. The operation comprised NATO led ISAF or International Security Assistance Force and Operation Enduring Freedom from the US. In a statement quoted by the Guardian, Michael Fallon the defense secretary of Britain said that mistakes were made during the Afghan war and it was a costly war in terms of human lives and suffering as well. The defence secretary was quoted as having said, “Mistakes were made militarily, mistakes were made by the politicians at the time and this goes back 10, 13 years. Clearly the numbers weren’t there at the beginning, the equipment wasn’t quite good enough at the beginning and we’ve learned an awful lot from the campaign. But don’t let’s ignore what has been achieved.”

“Our armed forces’ tremendous sacrifice laid the foundations for a strong Afghan security force, set the security context that enabled the first democratic transition of power in the country’s history and stopped it being a launchpad for terrorist attacks in the UK,” he added. He said the Taliban had not been defeated, but Afghan forces were taking “full responsibilities”. This was an important step forward in the resolution of conflicts and battles in Afghanistan.
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