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EUROPE
08 Oct 10. Afghanistan: OP HERRICK. A Rifleman from 1st Bn The Royal Gurkha Rifles was killed by a suicide bomber in the Nahr-e Saraj District on 2 Oct 10. A soldier from 2nd Bn The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment was killed in an explosion in the Nahr-e Saraj District on 8 Oct 10. UK deaths since the start of Operations on 7 Oct 01 thus rose to 340, of whom 300 were killed as a result of hostile action. (MoD, 8 Oct 10.)
The first Warthog vehicle arrived in Afghanistan on 10 Sep 10. It is planned that Warthog will reach full operating capability by the end of 2010. (Ministerial Answer (MA), 4 Oct 10.)
The net additional costs of Operations in Afghanistan from 2001 until 31 Mar 10 were £9,500m. The estimate for the current financial year is £4,400m. (MA, 4 Oct 10.)
Responsibility for the Police Development Advisory Training Team in Helmand Province has passed from
1st Bn The Mercian Regiment to 5th Bn The Royal Regiment of Scotland. (MoD, 5 Oct 10.)
British Forces have established an Infantry Branch School in the outskirts of Kabul. Based on the Infantry Battle School in Brecon, the Afghan School will train some 20,000 students a year. (MoD, 6 Oct 10.)
The first of 600 Royal Marines from 40 Commando started to return to their base near Taunton. 21 members of the Battle Group were killed in the Sangin area, of whom 14 were Royal Marines. (MoD, 7 Oct 10.)
Comment: The outgoing commander of Task Force Helmand gave an interview (7 Oct 10) via video link from Afghanistan. Brigadier Felton said that he had seen much progress in the (Helmand) region, not least in the development of the Afghan National Security Forces. (Source: DNA DEFENCE NEWS ANALYSIS, Issue 09/39, 11 Oct 10)
08 Oct 10. David Cameron is poised to press ahead with a £5.2bn ($8.3bn) order for two aircraft carriers after a knife-edge defence meeting that discussed accepting a “capability gap” with the vessels carrying no fighter jets. The prime minister chaired a crunch national security council session which broadly concluded that the balance of arguments favoured building both carriers, particularly given the cost of cancelling contracts. However, scrapping one vessel remains a possibility and the exact role of the vessels is under fierce debate, according to senior Whitehall figures. (Source: FT.com)
12 Oct 10. Britain will unveil a new national security strategy on Oct. 18 that will explain the principles underpinning defence spending cuts to be announced a day later, the government said on Tuesday. The results of a Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) that has been in the works for several months are eagerly awaited by the defence industry, which could face delays, renegotiations or cancellations of contracts. The SDSR results had long been expected on Oct. 19, but Prime Minister David
Cameron’s spokesman told reporters there would be two separate announcements: the national security strategy on Oct. 18, and decisions on resources a day later.
“The strategy is vital in determining what resources there should be and where they should be applied … We would like … to take people through the analysis a