First US Army officer to graduate from Sandhurst

[George L. Singleton]

Red Rat and David,

I have a friend serving on contract now in Kabul who was largely responsible for creating or putting together the new Afghan equivalent of West Point over the past two years.

He told me that one of the outside sources of funding for unique aspects of the Afghan Military Service Academy (don't know it's actual, technical name just now) came from the Government of Turkey, who agreed to fund a chapel, a mosque to be precise, being built as part of the total campus there in Kabul. This was and is a practical, far sighted event in my book.

Am interested in the current tense yellow journalism row going on in the UK Parliament over raising and sending more UK troops to Afghanistan. I believe these UK additional forces and equipment, particularly more helicopters, are sorely needed.

FOR GRADUATE STUDENT INPUT AND STUDY OR DISCUSSION: A friend who is a retired PhD (university professor) here in the South where we all live asked me the other day what are the reasons we are in Afghanistan; why do we still need to be there; and also he asked, his view, why don't we just pull out and declare victory?

Rather than bore everyone with my answers, I am interested in the inputs to these questions from and by the UK graduate students old and new Registered or as Members on the SWJ.

[davidbfpo]

(taken from) A friend who is a retired PhD (university professor) here in the South where we all live asked me the other day what are the reasons we are in Afghanistan; why do we still need to be there; and also he asked, his view, why don't we just pull out and declare victory?

George,

SWC have debated this question before, in various threads and posts, often returning to the comparison between the Taliban can wait and we have not got the patience for staying long enough. Hopeflly the new thread: http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...ead.php?t=7832 drawing upon David Kilcullen helps to give an answer.

davidbfpo

[davidbfpo]

A rather laudatory article in places, but with some reflective passages. The title and sub-title:

New model army: Sandhurst's officers of the future
As Sandhurst marks its 200th anniversary, the prospect of active service has boosted numbers of officer cadets, but how will the military academy fare in the future?

Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukne...he-future.html

[Ray]

Over the past 50 years Sandhurst has fended off attempts by politicians to turn it into a tri-service academy training officers from the RAF and Navy as well as the Army,

Here I would like to state that in the National Defence Academy in India we train all three services cadets together.

In various situations, combat or peace, it works marvellously when there is a hassle and one knows that one is from the same institution.

I recall an incident when we had to evacuate a boy in the High Altitude and if rules and red tape were to be enforced, it was 'no way'. It was just that a coursemate of NDA who was commanding the helicopter squadron and I rang him up and it did the trick. Much like the Old School tie stuff. It works wonders.

I also know a Colonel, who flew against rules, to save one boy in Siachen. He was sacked, but he did not regret his action, all because of Jointmanship.

Jointmanship is what they call it here.