MI6 demands more spies in Afghanistan to fight terrorism

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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/10392691/MI 6-demands-more-spies-in-Afghanistan-to-fight-terrorism.html


MI6 demands more spies in Afghanistan to fight terrorism


Security service calling for reinforcements from other agencies amid fears country will become 'intelligence vacuum' when British troops withdraw

by Steven Swinford, Daily Telegraph, 21 October 2013


The Telegraph understands that the concerns are being raised by the security services at the highest levels of Whitehall. The National Security Council is expected to discuss post-2014 Afghanistan before the end of the year. Britain’s justification for joining the war in Afghanistan in 2001 was to cut the threat posed from within the country after the September 11 terror attacks on the United States.

A well-placed source said that Britain’s agencies were already “very stretched” and focused on potential threats from Yemen and Somalia, warning that al-Qaeda could seek to exploit the lack of attention on Afghanistan.

The source described Afghanistan as “the weakest link” in Britain’s foreign intelligence coverage. “We have been heavily reliant on defence intelligence,” the source said. “When the Army goes, we will have a big gap in our intelligence capability.”

The smallest of Britain’s intelligence agencies, DI specialises in “early warning” analyses of emerging threats, and has done extensive work on Afghanistan.

Attaching DI staff to MI6 would help “make sure that there is a continuance of the ongoing understanding of what’s going on on the ground”, the source said.

During a visit to Afghanistan earlier this year, David Cameron said Britain had paid a “high price” for involvement in the war and that it was time for troops to return home.

About 100 British soldiers are expected to remain to train Afghan officers at a military academy known as “Sandhurst in the sands”, and Britain has also pledged financial support. But senior military sources have suggested troops may need to remain until 2020 to help fight the Taliban.

Hopes for a secure legacy rest on the outcome of elections in April, when President Hamid Karzai stands down. A diplomatic source indicated that the Afghan constitution may have to be amended to curb presidential power.

A UK Government spokesman said: “Our action in Afghanistan has substantially reduced the terrorist threat to the UK from this region.”


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