Defence secretary Ben Wallace has warned that it is unlikely British troops will be able to prevent Afghanistan from falling back to the Taliban.
Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, he said: “It would be arrogant to think we could solve Afghanistan unilaterally. The solution can only come if the force is multinational and the nations involved bring to bear all the tools of nation building - hard power, soft power, foreign aid, and political alliances.”
It comes amid reports that arrangements were being made to airlift out Sir Laurie Bristow, the British ambassador, from Kabul by Monday evening.
With militants closing in on the capital city, the UK government faced accusations that it was abandoning the country to its fate. An RAF Hercules was reported to have flown out of Kabul on Saturday – carrying diplomats and civilians – amid growing concerns that the Taliban will take the airport, cutting off the only way to leave the capital.
- What does the Taliban want in Afghanistan?
- Taliban capture Mazar-e-Sharif, government’s last northern stronghold
- Kabul within reach of Taliban as Ghani resists pressure to stand down
- Taliban closes in on Kabul amid fierce clashes near the capital
- It is government weakness, not Taliban strength, that condemns Afghanistan
