War Won't Be Quick or Easy, British Officials Say, but Prime Minister Confident of Victory

The Associated Press via TBO.com ^ | Oct 28, 2001 | Chris Fontaine, Associated Press Writer

[GeekDejure]

LONDON (AP) - The war in Afghanistan won't be quick, easy or painless, government officials stressed Sunday but British Prime Minister Tony Blair said he was confident of victory.

Blair said in a brief statement that the U.S.-led war was morally just, while his deputies used morning talk shows to prepare the nation for the grim consequences of putting British soldiers on the ground in Afghanistan.

"Whatever our faults, Britain is a very moral nation with a strong sense of right and wrong, and that moral fiber will defeat the fanaticism of the terrorists and their supporters," the prime minister said. After announcing Friday that British Marines are being put in position for attacks against the Taliban, the government and military have spent the weekend cautioning that the campaign could drag on for years.

"This kind of military action may last indefinitely. This is not something we are saying now three weeks in, it is something we said right at the beginning," Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said on a British Broadcasting Corp. talk show Sunday. Military commanders say Britain is in for "the long haul." Chief of Defense Staff Admiral Sir Michael Boyce was quoted Saturday as saying the fight against international terrorism could take half a century. As reports of civilian casualties in Afghanistan mount along with questions of the effectiveness of the air campaign, Straw said the government was at pains to remind the British public why the conflict was happening and what gains had been made so far.

"We have broken up the terrorist camps. People seem to forget about that. They are inoperable," he said. "One of the objectives we have set has happened." Responding to claims that the United States and Britain were already bent on attacking Iraq, the foreign secretary said military objectives have not expanded beyond bringing Osama bin Laden and the al-Qaida terror network to justice. Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz said in The Sunday Telegraph newspaper that "it is just a matter of time" before Britain and the United States attack his country and try to topple Saddam Hussein under the pretext of a war on terrorism.

"The only military action on the agenda is in Afghanistan," Straw said, adding that there was not "an explicit military aim" to remove the Taliban from power, despite the fact that a new Afghan regime appeared inevitable. Lewis Moonie, a junior defense minister, said on a GMTV morning talk show that the public must accept the possibility of British casualties as 200 specially trained Marines join the conflict.

"People have to be prepared for the fact that this is a difficult operation and that our troops will be called upon to put themselves in danger for us," Moonie said.

Straw said a halt in military action for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan was "being considered," but he noted that such a pause had not been taken by warring Muslim countries in the past.

[stevem]

The war in Afghanistan won't be quick, easy or painless, government officials stressed Sunday but British Prime Minister Tony Blair said he was confident of victory.

There isn't anything quick, easy OR painless about a seige. Yet, if prosecuted properly, with an ever tightening grip, there is a certain inevitability about it. It also will minimize casualties among the good guys.