Meanwhile, amid the teeming poppy fields:
Afghanistan will fall apart unless Nato countries urgently fulfil promises to send troops, the Commons foreign affairs select committee warned yesterday.
With violence rising ahead of an election scheduled for October, the MPs concluded: “There is a real danger that if these resources are not provided soon Afghanistan – a fragile state in one of the most sensitive and volatile regions of the world – could implode, with terrible consequences.”
. . .
The MPs criticised the Nato countries, other than the US and Britain, who pledged support at their summit in Istanbul in June but did not match that with the provision of desperately needed troops for the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf).
. . .
They added: “We recommend that the government impresses upon its Nato allies the need to deliver on their promises to help Afghanistan before it is too late, both for the credibility of the alliance and, more importantly, for the people of Afghanistan.”
I guess this shortfall can be excused. After all, we have to take care of things in Iraq, right?
Oops. Same deal there:
“We conclude that the insufficient number of troops in Iraq has contributed to the deterioration in security. We further conclude that the failure of countries other than the US and the UK to send significant numbers of troops has had serious and regrettable consequences.”
So when John Kerry talks about the urgent need to strengthen alliances and bring in other nations, it’s not just idle chatter.