Contingency planning for sending more British troops to Iraq is at an advanced stage, the BBC has learned. An estimated extra 800 members of 40 Commando could be deployed in June or July with an official announcement next week, defence sources say.
Top brass from the UK military were in Iraq last week and it is understood they were examining Britain’s options. These could include expanding the UK presence in the Iraqi provinces of Najaf and Qadifiyah. Commenting on the move, Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Sir Menzies Campbell said the extra troops might find themselves serving alongside US forces whom he said had a "different culture" to their British counterparts. "My anxiety would be that if British forces were sent to Baghdad and were under the direct operational command of an American commander, then they might find themselves in the position of having to decide whether or not to accept an order or whether to rely on their own instincts and training," he said.
Mmmmmm... what do our American cousins make of Menzies Campbell’s opinions? |