Stirrup: 'No military solution in Afghanistan'

By Richard Holt, Daily Telegraph

There is no military solution to the struggle against Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan, according to Britain's most senior armed forces leader.

Air Chief Marshall Sir Jock Stirrup said: "There is a common misperception that the issues in Afghanistan, and indeed elsewhere around the world, can be dealt with by military means. That's a false perception."

In an interview with Sky News, Sir Jock added: "The military is a key, an essential element in dealing with those problems, but by and large these problems can only be resolved politically."

He was speaking as Gordon Brown called for greater "burden sharing" in Afghanistan.

The Prime Minister made the appeal after a meeting in Downing Street with Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president.

Mr Brown praised the bravery of the armed forces, adding: "We have got the Taliban on the defensive by the combined efforts of everyone.

"We are all determined that Afghanistan should never become a failed state again, and to support the democracy that's been created in that country."

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