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General seeks UK Iraq withdrawal
The head of the British Army has said the presence of UK armed forces in Iraq "exacerbates the security problems".
In an interview in the Daily Mail, Sir Richard Dannatt, Chief of the General Staff, is quoted as saying the British should "get out some time soon".
He also said: "Let's face it, the military campaign we fought in 2003, effectively kicked the door in."
Sir Richard added that any initial tolerance "has largely turned to intolerance. That is a fact."
Sir Richard, who took on his role in August, also said planning for what happened after the initial successful war military offensive was "poor, probably based more on optimism than sound planning".
'Not invited in'
He said: "I don't say that the difficulties we are experiencing round the world are caused by our presence in Iraq but undoubtedly our presence in Iraq exacerbates them."
Sir Richard told the newspaper: "We are in a Muslim country and Muslims' views of foreigners in their country are quite clear.
"As a foreigner, you can be welcomed by being invited in a country, but we weren't invited certainly by those in Iraq at the time."
He added: "Whatever consent we may have had in the first place, may have turned to tolerance and has largely turned to intolerance."
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This is practically unprecedented, senior military officers are notoriously restrained usually.
As someone on other forums wrote:
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Crikey! This is about as close as you get to a revolution from the British army.
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This is going to be an
immense political event, especially given he is the highest ranking serving soldier in the army.
Moreover, according to military sources, he is not speaking in a personal capacity, but reflecting deep anger in the army over the situation in Iraq, the role of the invasion force and the non-existent post-war planning.
[ 10-12-2006, 05:49 PM: Message edited by: shamrock_uk ]