UK Military Commitments

House of Lords written question – answered at on 17 June 2004.

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Photo of Lord Astor of Hever Lord Astor of Hever Deputy Chief Whip, Whips, Shadow Minster for Defence, International Affairs

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is the present United Kingdom military commitment in Afghanistan, in terms of numbers, units and roles; whether any future changes in this commitment have taken place over the past two years; and whether they are contemplating any future changes in the commitment.

Photo of Lord Bach Lord Bach Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Procurement)

The United Kingdom currently has around 580 military personnel from all three services serving in Afghanistan, with the largest single contingent drawn from the 1st Battalion, the Green Howards. Their numbers and roles are:

Table 1: United Kingdom Military Deployments in Afghanistan on 11 June 2004
Role and Location Number
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), Kabul 400
Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs), Mazar-e Sharif and Meymaneh 165
Coalition Headquarters, Kabul and Bagram 15
Total 580

On 11 June 2002 the United Kingdom had around 2,770 troops deployed in Afghanistan, again from all three services, and with the largest contingents drawn from 45 Commando, Royal Marines and the 1st Battalion, the Royal Anglian Regiment. Their numbers and roles were:

Table 2: United Kingdom Military Deployments in Afghanistan on 11 June 2002
Role and Location Number
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), Kabul 1,300
Task Force JACANA, Bagram 1,440
Airfield Security, Bagram 65
Coalition Headquarters, Bagram 5
Total 2,810

The principal changes over the past two years stem from the transfer of the United Kingdom's status as lead nation for the ISAF to Turkey on 20 June 2002, the withdrawal of Task Force JACANA following the completion of its operations on 10 July 2002 and the deployment in July 2003 of the PRT to Mazar-e Sharif.

I informed the House on 1 April 2004 (Hansard, cols. WS 70–71) of our intention to play a leading role in ISAF's expansion in northern Afghanistan. We shall lead a second multinational PRT in Meymaneh and help to provide support facilities for PRTs across the North of Afghanistan. We are currently in the process of establishing these capabilities. We keep all our commitments under regular review but I do not anticipate our current force levels changing significantly.

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