ARE WE RIGHT TO BE AT WAR? I SAY YES; Brown calls for 'resolve' on Afghanistan.Byline: Bob Roberts DETERMINED Gordon Brown yesterday made a passionate defence of the campaign in Afghanistan. In a keynote speech keynote speech n. See keynote address. Noun 1. keynote speech - a speech setting forth the keynote keynote address keynote - the principal theme in a speech or literary work in London, the Prime Minister told the International Institute of Strategic Studies he never took military action lightly - especially when Britain's security was at stake. On the day the bodies of two more soldiers arrived at RAF Lyneham RAF Lyneham (IATA: LYE, ICAO: EGDL) is a Royal Air Force station in Wiltshire, England. It is the home of all the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft of the Royal Air Force. The station is also home to No.38 Expeditionary Air Wing. he said: "Each time I have to ask myself if we are doing the right thing by being in Afghanistan. "Each time, I ask myself if we can justify sending our young men and women to fight for this cause. "My answer has always been yes. Reigned "When the security of our country is at stake, we cannot walk away." Speaking a day after defence minister Eric Joyce Major Eric Joyce (born October 13, 1960, in Perth, Scotland) is a British politician and Member of Parliament for the Scottish constituency of Falkirk representing the Labour Party. resigned in protest at the direction of the Afghan campaign, Brown urged the country to "strengthen its resolve" to deal with rising casualties. He acknowledged it had been "the most difficult of summers" as British deaths rose to more than 200 since 2001. He said: "It is at times like this when we must strengthen, not weaken, our resolve. "We must stand up to those who would threaten our way of life." Brown said he wants to speed up the training of Afghan soldiers so they can take over the fighting from British troops next year. Britain, he went on, must "take heart" from the progress made since the Taliban were forced out in 2001. Disenchanted Joyce yesterday said the Government had failed to persuade the country it was right to keep troops in Afghanistan. The Labour MP for Falkirk - a former Army major - said: "I don't think we can say we are preventing terrorism back in the UK. "It is not enough of an explanation. People need to know what would happen if we were not there." NATO NATO: see North Atlantic Treaty Organization. NATO in full North Atlantic Treaty Organization International military alliance created to defend western Europe against a possible Soviet invasion. promised an inquiry into a jet attack in northern Afghanistan that killed up to 40 civilians yesterday. The rocket attack destroyed two fuel tankers hijacked by the Taliban. The fireball fireball, very bright meteor leaving a trail in the sky that can remain visible for several minutes; often a distinct sound, perhaps caused by very low frequency radio waves, is associated with it. killed about 50 fighters but it is feared civilians siphoning petrol also died. CAPTION(S): SECURITY: PM yesterday |
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