Britain Could Send 10,000 Troops to Afghanistan: Newspaper

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, December 09, 2001

Britain Could Send 10,000 Troops to Afghanistan: Newspaper

Britain could send up to 10,000 troops to Afghanistan under plans being drawn up for a "stabilization force," according to The Sunday Telegraph.

Britain could send up to 10,000 troops to Afghanistan under plans being drawn up for a "stabilization force," according to The Sunday Telegraph.

The figure, far greater than talked about publicly so far, is contained in a planning document that Prime Minister Tony Blair isstudying this weekend, the newspaper said.

It is part of Britain's bid to lead a 50,000-strong multinational force to safeguard the fledgling regime in Kabul when it takes over power on December 22.

Soldiers from the Second Battalion of the Parachute Regiment could be deployed next week if agreement between the U.N. and the interim Afghan administration can be reached over the make-up and mission of a multinational stabilization force, the newspaper said. "The British are the most experienced and successful peacekeeping force in the world and that experience must be used in Afghanistan," the newspaper quoted one senior military officer as saying.

U.S. Secretary of State, Colin Powell, who will discuss the plan with Prime Minister Tony Blair on a visit to London on Tuesday, raised for the first time the possibility of a British-led force Saturday.

Britain Willing to Send Peacekeeping Troops to Afghanistan