At PMQ’s today Nick Clegg questions were focused onthe Chilcot inquiry. Is this another sign that Nick is moving towards a demand for a full withdrawal from Afghanistan?
Tags: Afghanistan, Chilcot inquiry, Nick Clegg, PMQsThe story, in short:
A consultancy in London provided this nation-building plan to the Pentagon. Wonderfully it ended up online (still available, here).
A quick visual of the plan to build a new nation of Afghanistan…
STEP 1: Look for support! Yes, this is your “Popular Support”
Step 2: Ah, but these strange A-rab folk are a bit different to us, yes? What about their “Conditions, Beliefs & Structures”? Better shove them in.
Step 3: But ugh, the insurgents! And all those poppy fields. Better shove them in ‘n’ all…
Step 4: Right, there might economists in the room. Mention infrastructure and the economy and stuff…
Step 5: Not to mention the ‘public sector workers’. Fit them in somewhere…
Step 6: And the Brits, don’t forget them. You know, the ‘Coalition’, the other governments. Include the ‘Coalition’. Still following?
Step 7: Dammit, there’s still a gap left. Make something up…
Step 8: Add some colour. That’s better. But actually, what happens when all these things link together? Don’t we need to…
Step 9: …ah yes, that’s better. Everyone reading from the same hymn sheet now? Ladies and Gentlemen, the Development of Afghanistan Stability!
YES.
This will definitely work.
GOD BLESS AMERICA!
Hat-tip: Chris Coyne.
Tags: Afghanistan, nation building, neo Cons, Tony BlairToday the Government has told us that it intends our forces to be in Afghanistan for some considerable time to come. OK it didnt say that exactly. What it did say was that “hard decisions” had to be made on what programmes to abandon in order to enhance frontline support by £900 million over the next three years.
Amongst other things it is committing to splashing out on 22 new Chinook helicopters….the first ten of which will not be ready til 2013 and the remaining dozen some time thereafter. So we are clearly planning to stay in Afghanistan for some considerable time then – or do we have some other sunny destination in mind?
Tags: Afghanistan, chinooks, MOD
Over at politicalbetting.com, Mike Smithson ponders whether Nick Clegg might be close to calling for a withdrawal from Afghanistan. And suggests it could be an “Iraq” moment for the party.
Unlike Nick, who believes we aren’t “yet” at the point where we have to accept we can’t do the job in Afghanistan properly, I think we passed that point many moons ago.
We shouldn’t set our foreign policy according to naked electoral calculations, but it’s worth noting that Conservative voters are even more opposed to our continuing deployment in Afghanistan than Liberal Democrats. If we won over a good number of these key soft Tory voters, it would be just reward for having called it right.
Tags: Afghanistan