Speaking at a press conference broadcast after he had left the war zone on Tuesday, he stressed again that the troops were there only in the national interest. He said that the next 6 to 12 months were crucial in ensuring that the “hard won progress” was “irreversible”.
Head of defence staff, General Sir David Richards, went further than the Prime Minister’s sentiments of “cautious optimism”, describing progress as “astronomical”.
“The key word is ‘doable’,“ he said. ”I’ve sensed we can do it at last, we have got the resources.”
“If three years ago a prime minister had said we could get out by 2015 with the level of resourcing we were suffering from then, I would have said I have a problem with that,” said General Richards.
“But actually the resources are in, things are coming together well. There will be period over the next year or two when we have our ups and downs but we think we can get there.”
The Ministry of Defence is generally upbeat about progress in Afghanistan, citing the first pop concert in 30 years in Helmand Province as evidence of the improving security situation.
The prime minister also announced a £135 million order for five remote control drones – doubling the current number – and for 100 armoured vehicles known as Warthogs, which offer far greater protection from explosions than their forerunner, the Viking.
David Cameron announced last month that UK troops would withdraw from combat operations in Afghanistan by 2015.
