'UK troops in Afghanistan on journey that never finishes'

London, Oct 11 (PTI) British troops are likely to be out
of Iraq within a year but it is going to be years before the
task is finished in Afghanistan, the head of the British armed
forces said Saturday.

Sir Jock Stirrup's comment came a week after Brigadier
Mark Carleton-Smith, Britain's top military commander in the
war-torn country, said the public should not expect a
"decisive military victory" in Afghanistan.

The 58-year-old air chief marshal told The Times that in
both Iraq and Afghanistan, British troops were on a "journey
that never finishes".

"The 4,100 British troops are likely to be out of Iraq
within a year, the Iraqis are "very close to the point when
they can handle the security challenges themselves," Jock told
the British daily.

"Afghanistan is going to be a longer haul. Afghanistan
is a very backward country... (militarily) it's going to be
some years before we finish that project," he said.

Jock said the public must change its expectations of
what could be achieved. "We should avoid the use of words like
'win' and 'lose' in the context of Afghanistan, where 7,800
British troops are fighting Taliban insurgents.

It's not that sort of enterprise. It's about helping the
Afghans make progress in bringing their country towards the
modern world. That's very, very long journey where success is
measured in each year looking a bit better than the one
before," he added.

The aim of the mission in Afghanistan, like that in
Iraq, is to "help the government there extend governance to
their people and to improve their lot."

Sir Jock said morale is "excellent" out in the field
although "good morale is not the same as being happy."

Prince Harry's tour of duty gave the armed forces a great
boost, he said adding "Prince Harry and his brother, William
should, when possible, be allowed to fight on the front line".

"The key criterion is do they increase the overall level
of risk beyond that which exists anyway?" He does not want to
cover the Princes with cotton wool.

"If you are going to be in the military you need to do
what the military do... The clear demonstration that members
of the Royal Family are anxious to bear the same burdens and

Stirrup repeated his call for greater funding for
Britain's armed forces, despite the credit crunch.

"The pre-requisite of a sound defence is a sound
economy," he added.

"But you have to continue protecting your interests. You
can't take a holiday from doing that," Jock said.