Word: afghanistans
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...Whether the British public is willing to back a violent campaign over such a protracted period is uncertain, however. The buildup and execution of Operation Panther's Claw led to the bloodiest month to date for British forces in Afghanistan, with 22 British personnel killed in July. The financial cost of the campaign is mounting too: according to a report in the Times of London, spending on Britain's military operations in Afghanistan has more than trebled, from $1.3 billion in 2006-'07 to $4.4 billion in 2008-'09. And there are indications that the British public's patience...
...Contentious as it may be, the need to consolidate the success of Panther's Claw will make the logic for sending additional British troops to Afghanistan irresistible, according to Paul Cornish, head of the International Security Program at the London-based think tank Chatham House. Eventually, however, the British public will demand that politicians articulate an endgame. "Britain will commit additional troops because there's such a sound logic to it militarily," says Cornish. "But I can't see how we can plan to be there for the next two or three decades. I just don't see how that...
...emphasis on diplomatic measures in Afghanistan comes at a time when NATO officials see Britain's commitment as essential to the security of the alliance. Britain has the highest number of troops in Afghanistan behind the U.S.; while other European countries have sent troops only for nation-building exercises in stable parts of the country, the Brits (along with the Canadians) have taken heavy casualties. In his first speech as the new head of the alliance on Monday, Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen reiterated that NATO's priority must be the war in Afghanistan. "NATO is a strong military alliance...
...Britain, however, the war in Afghanistan has led to soul-searching over the role of the country's troops not only in NATO but in the wider world as well. Still shaped by its fortitude in the "good war" against the Nazis, Britain has had its conception of its military power - and its confidence in what it's fighting for - shaken by the more recent conflicts in Iraq and, now, Afghanistan. "We still have a very strong and patriotic affection for our troops," says Chatham House's Cornish. "But many British people feel conflicted by the desire to support...
...TIME's photos of treasure-hunting in Afghanistan...