| Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, November 14, 2001 |
British Troops Poised to Enter Afghanistan |
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Several thousand British troopsare on stand-by to enter Afghanistan within days to maintain security in the cities of Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif after the fall of them to Northern Alliance forces, the Ministry of Defense said on Wednesday.
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Several thousand British troopsare on stand-by to enter Afghanistan within days to maintain security in the cities of Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif after the fall of them to Northern Alliance forces, the Ministry of Defense said on Wednesday.
A ministry spokeswoman said the troops were on "reduced notice to move" and their job would be to provide security until a UnitedNations force is organized to assist in a full-scale aid operation.
The troops are reportedly on a two-day stand-by. But the spokeswoman said no deployment decision had been made yet, adding that the soldiers would not be sent to Afghanistan on an offensiveoperation to face off against the Taliban.
"Several thousand troops currently based in the UK have received a reduced notice to move from five days to two days. Onceour role is determined, then they can cherry-pick which troops will be used," said the spokeswoman.
"The British troops will be used as a stability force to prove support to allow the right conditions for a new regime in the country," she said. Britain is a key ally of the United States in its war on Afghanistan's ruling Taliban, who were driven from Kabul on Tuesday by the opposition Northern Alliance.
The spokeswoman said Three Commando Brigade of the Royal Marines, the army's 16 Air Assault Brigade, including the Second Battalion of the Parachute Regiment and the 45 Commando unit of the Royal Marines are amongst those on reduced notice.
She said the Royal Air Force air transport unit, which counts on Hercules C17 support helicopters, a contingent of the Royal Engineers, transport aircraft and mine clearers could also be called upon to support the operations. "It is an extremely fluid situation though you may not see an order to deploy for a few days," she said.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Tuesday there was an urgent need for a United Nations presence in Kabul to fill a powervacuum left by the Taliban. But Blair gave no details of the U.N. presence he wanted.
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