Mali

Frank the tank
Frank the tank Posts: 6,553
edited January 2013 in The cake stop
Is this going to be a case of being slowly sucked into yet another "conflict" where we ought to be keeping our noses out of.
Tail end Charlie

The above post may contain traces of sarcasm or/and bullsh*t.

Comments

  • Cleat Eastwood
    Cleat Eastwood Posts: 7,508
    send in Andy Kershaw :roll:
    The dissenter is every human being at those moments of his life when he resigns
    momentarily from the herd and thinks for himself.
  • smoggysteve
    smoggysteve Posts: 2,909
    More bothered that the govt keeps throwing these things at us and still pushes on with the redundancy program. Never known the army feel so dispirited as we are now.
  • rodgers73
    rodgers73 Posts: 2,626
    British troops are training Malian army not fighting. Similar to what we did in Sierra Leone.

    This is going to become a counter-insurgency soon not a normal hot war so I'd expect SAS to be assisting in some capacity but otherwise ordinary squaddies will be kept out of it
  • smoggysteve
    smoggysteve Posts: 2,909
    edited January 2013
    I was in Oman on exercise in 2001 when 9/11 happened. A lot of troops from 4th Armd Bde went to Afghanistan then to play a short term support role as we were told. So, never say never.
  • Frank the tank
    Frank the tank Posts: 6,553
    rodgers73 wrote:
    British troops are training Malian army not fighting. Similar to what we did in Sierra Leone.

    This is going to become a counter-insurgency soon not a normal hot war so I'd expect SAS to be assisting in some capacity but otherwise ordinary squaddies will be kept out of it

    I hope you're right.
    Tail end Charlie

    The above post may contain traces of sarcasm or/and bullsh*t.
  • tim_wand
    tim_wand Posts: 2,552
    SmoggySteve wrote:
    I was in Oman on exercise in 2001 when 9/11 happened. A lot of troops from 4th Armd Bde went to Afghanistan then to play a short term support role as we were told. So, never say never.


    This^^^^^^

    My very first tour, at only 18 was UNTAG in Namibia in 89, went to see the transition of Namibia to independence from South African control, then Winnie Mandela started murdering people and all of a sudden we were a little more comitted.

    North West Africa is a not a place we want to start playing policeman in.
  • smoggysteve
    smoggysteve Posts: 2,909
    Yup, Things there are fragile at best at any given moment. The smallest thing could have big consequences. Also, if the US want to start their game of chasing down terrorism and Muslim extremism around the globe it could get bigger.
  • Frank the tank
    Frank the tank Posts: 6,553
    Islamic fundamentalism/ muslim extremists.

    If people genuinely believe an interpretation of a religious preaching however right/wrong/mis-guided it may be. I don't see how it can be defeated as in the "enemy" in a conventional war can be. So it's just going to go on and on and as much as the west would like to put measures in place to prevent the spread of such beliefs it (the west) will be on a loser. We may get ourselves, eventually in a position where we've papered over the cracks but I fear that will be about as good as it will get.

    I'm not saying the west shouldn't try, just that it is a "war" it will never truely win.
    Tail end Charlie

    The above post may contain traces of sarcasm or/and bullsh*t.
  • Dancing Bear
    Dancing Bear Posts: 185
    i think the situation in Egypt could demonstrate if the Islamist brotherhood can or can not govern their respective populations - looks to be the most volatile place in the middle east right now.
    http://www.lpsg.org/avatars/standard/avatar0392.gif
  • daviesee
    daviesee Posts: 6,386
    Frank the tank wrote:
    I'm not saying the west shouldn't try, just that it is a "war" it will never truely win.
    As far as the extremists are concerned everything today is just a continuation of the Crusades.
    Think of it in those time terms. :shock:
    None of the above should be taken seriously, and certainly not personally.
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    daviesee wrote:
    As far as the extremists are concerned everything today is just a continuation of the Crusades.
    Think of it in those time terms. :shock:

    Yep the history books are written by the victors. One mans freedom fighters are another mans terrorists / imperialist invaders. We are all as bad as each other.
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • BelgianBeerGeek
    BelgianBeerGeek Posts: 5,226
    SmoggySteve wrote:
    Yup, Things there are fragile at best at any given moment. The smallest thing could have big consequences. Also, if the US want to start their game of chasing down terrorism and Muslim extremism around the globe it could get bigger.
    Maybe. I thought current US thinking was to re-focus on the Pacific. They are just as skint as us and have realised they can't be everywhere. They are keen on encouraging the EU to get involved though.
    North Africa is a growing issue and because it's close to Europe I can only see this getting more protracted.

    Don't trust politicians who say things like "no combat troops", "we'll be happy if a shot isn't fired" or "it will all be over by Christmas"
    Ecrasez l’infame
  • smoggysteve
    smoggysteve Posts: 2,909
    All I am aware of is, I have spend a large part of my life sitting in sandy,dusty sh@tholes in the name of counter insurgency/terrorism/stabalisation.
  • GavH
    GavH Posts: 933
    I'd be more worried about what plans are being drawn up for intervention in Syria. Mali would be a proper picnic by comparison to a Brigade trying to establish a safe haven in Syria.

Categories