topics
tools
Expatica countries
Index Last Var.(%)
BEL 20 2270.63 -0.42
DAX 6788.8 0.59
IBEX 30 8902.1 0.60
CAC 40 3424.71 0.43
FTSE 100 5895.47 0.33
AEX 325.12 -0.06
DJIA 12890.46 0.05
Nasdaq 2927.23 0.39
FTSE MIB 16653.83 -0.09
TSX Composite 12497.94 -0.18
ASX 4342.5 -0.34
Hang seng 21010.01 -0.04
Straits Times 2981.17 -0.03
ISEQ 20 503.71 0.33
You are here: Home News French News French army chief: no victory in Afghanistan

French News

archive
Enlarge font Decrease font Text size


09/10/2008French army chief: no victory in Afghanistan

General Georgelin, agreeing with a top British military officer, says that the war in Afghanistan can’t be won.

9 October 2008

PARIS -- The head of the French military General Jean-Louis Georgelin on Wednesday supported comments by a senior British military officer that the war in Afghanistan could not be won.
   
A British officer "was saying that one cannot win this war militarily, that there is no military solution to the Afghan crisis and I totally share this feeling", Georgelin told French television channel Public Senat.
   
"The strategy of NATO, as it has been redefined in Bucharest (at the start of April) does not say anything else", he said.
   
Georgelin's remarks came just a few days after comments by British Brigadier Mark Carleton-Smith.
   
Carleton-Smith, the country's top military officer in Afghanistan, told the Sunday Times that people should "lower their expectations" about how the conflict there would end.
   
"We're not going to win this war. It's about reducing it to a manageable level of insurgency that's not a strategic threat and can be managed by the Afghan army", he told the newspaper.
   
Carleton-Smith said his forces took “the sting out of the Taliban for 2008" but said it would be "unrealistic and probably incredible" to think that the multinational forces in Afghanistan could rid the country of armed bands.
   
"We may well leave with there still being a low but steady ebb of rural insurgency... I don't think we should expect that when we go there won't be roaming bands of armed men in this part of the world," he said.
    
On Tuesday, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said Carleton-Smith's remarks were distorted by the media. Success in Afghanistan did not mean "killing every Taliban", but ensuring the Afghan government was in control, he wrote in his official blog.
   
NATO has almost 51,000 troops in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), which is trying to spread President Hamid Karzai's rule and promote reconstruction, but still needs soldiers and helicopters to help suppress the Taliban.
   
[AFP / Expatica]


0 reactions to this article

Be the first person to add a comment

General rating: Not rated yet

Rate article:    Add my rating


0 reactions to this article

Be the first person to add a comment
Discussion Forums

Jobs in France

IFAs / FSIs / Country Managers / Confidential Introducers

Immigration and Legal Problems

Blocked Sewer Line outside property boundary - who pays ?

Sporting Events in France

Counter Strike!

Community Noticeboard France | Expat Events

migration to belgium!

Americans in France

Expatriate Events in Paris

participate in the forums

Inside Expatica
Management culture in France

Management culture in France

This handy guide from Expertise in Labour Mobility includes information on business hierarchy, negotiations, and etiquette.

American associations and clubs in Paris

American associations and clubs in Paris

A listing of organizations in the Paris area that cater primarily to Americans living in France. Updated April 2011.

British associations and clubs in Paris

British associations and clubs in Paris

Our handy guide to the British community in Paris, from cricket clubs to Scottish country dancing lessons to where to find a jar of Marmite.

Anglophone services in France

Anglophone services in France

Here's a short introduction to our Banking section for those living in France, from how to open a bank account to Islamic banking and investments.