Britain fails in Iraq & Afghan wars

A majority of American officials believe Britain has failed in Iraq and is failing in Afghanistan, says an advisor to the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC).

Professor Julian Lindley-French, an associate fellow at the Chatham House think tank in London, told Channel 4 News that there are many in the senior ranks of the US military and the US government as well as on Capitol Hill who believe British forces have not succeeded in Iraq and will not succeed in Afghanistan.

Lindley-French went on to say that “British forces, although technically capable, simply lack the critical mass and technology to dominate the space in which they have been conducting operations.”

“A true strategic partnership between the world’s fifth and sixth largest economies and the second and third biggest cash spenders on defense could finally create a European pole of security and defence power that could in turn help to reinvigorate and re-balance a tired transatlantic relationship,” he added.

“In an age of austerity, defense affordability will be at the heart of the Anglo-French agenda.”

Meanwhile, he described the British government’s decision to scrap the Nimrod reconnaissance plane program in its Strategic Defense and Security Review (SDSR) as “stupid.”

“Restore Nimrod and build it into an Anglo-French force and share the costs,” said Lindley-French, adding that this was an area where Britain and France could work together.

Lindley-French, who advises ARRC on how to handle military operations involving civilians, has recently written a story on Britain and France military cooperation in the Chatham House report.