Top soldier spoke of war 'progress'

Jul 3 2009

The most senior British Army officer to be killed in action for 27 years had said he was sure progress in the Afghanistan campaign was going in the "right direction" just weeks before his death.

Lieutenant Colonel Rupert Thorneloe, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, was killed near Lashkar Gah in Helmand province, southern Afghanistan, on Wednesday.

He died alongside 18-year-old Trooper Joshua Hammond when an improvised explosive device (IED) was detonated under their Viking armoured vehicle.

During an interview with a reporter from Real Radio Wales in Helmand province in May, when Lt Col Thorneloe was questioned about whether Army fatalities were justified for the campaign, he replied: "I think it is impossible to justify on a sort of one-for-one.

"Every death is a tragedy and we feel very deeply the loss of our friends and our soldiers who are here with us but I am sure that the mission here is the right thing to be doing in terms of providing for the security of the people back home."

Asked about the increased threat of attack from militants around poppy harvest time, he said: "Traditionally the summer is busier, that is absolutely right.

"We take a great deal of care to try and find out what the enemy forces are doing, how they might posture themselves and how we may pre-empt that."

He also said he believed it would be some time before UK troops could withdraw fully from the country.

"I think anybody who looks at this at a higher level than me," he said, "will tell you this is a long term challenge and it is going to take some time before stability and security here are such that there won't be a need for us but what I will say is that the progress here is in the right direction.

"We are increasing within my AO (area of command) and across Helmand the area that is controlled by the government of Afghanistan and within that area we are deepening the effect we have so that things are improving. Our progress is in the right direction, I'm sure of that, but it is going to take time."