It’s a local process but as I say, the indications are if a village, if a local leader and a local community decide to switch their allegiance from the Taliban to the Government, it is a sign that they feel more secure with the Government, they feel confidence in the future, they don’t feel they’re going to be let down. Stay in the know with the latest from the Tactical-Life newsletter

The reintegration and the, the reconciliation process it, it’s led by the Afghan Government, it is not a, it, it, it is a process where only those who are prepared to come over and accept the Afghan Government’s terms, they’re the only people being reintroduced.There is no international negotiation with the Taliban as such. You try to push [the images] to the back of your mind.

40 Commando marine family reflect on Afghanistan tour

Andy's home now and he could be off on a tour in January, February, March - you just don't know and you just deal with it at the time.

See more ideas about Royal marines, Royal marine commando, Marine commandos. But I would contrast what’s been said with plenty of other evidence that we have which indicates that the country is being made more secure and there is a process going on. 11 Oct 10 |  42 Commando (read and said as Four-Two Commando) is a subordinate unit within the Royal Marines 3 Commando Brigade, the principal Commando formation, under the Operational Command of Fleet Commander.. Tasked as a Commando unit, 42 Cdo RM is capable of a wide range of operational tasks. I would then turn to today’s papers and ask colleagues to look at the interview given yesterday by Governor Mangal who’s the Government of Helmand Province who was reporting to journalists in London on the progress of the last couple of years, his tribute to the troops and then the progress that’s been made over the last couple of years because of the work done by 40 Commando and others.

People & Places A huge success story in Afghanistan- The Afghan National Army Special Operations Command. Obviously the pace picked up later on through the tour, so we were really busy. Don’t worry we won’t send you spam or share your email address with anyone.

And I think hearing it from the man who’s in charge on the ground, who’s very close of course to Afghan opinion, I hope will make our soldiers feel much better about what they’ve achieved.So they’ve done a great job and I hope by, by my being able to communicate that to them and the wider public, then I hope the forces will feel better about what they’ve done, because they have done a wonderful job.Now it, clearly some of those who have been fighting on the other side, the Taliban is not a unified whole, there are local groups who say I don’t want to go on fighting any more. WASHINGTON– The Pentagon has proposed to make Army Gen. David…WASHINGTON– The Pentagon has proposed to make Army Gen. David D. McKiernan overall commander of both NATO and U.S. troops in Afghanistan, a senior Pentagon spokesman told reporters here today.“We are looking at options and ways that we can streamline the command-and-control arrangements for U.S. forces in Afghanistan,” spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters.The proposed change, he said, is viewed as a method to make management of U.S. forces in Afghanistan “more efficient and effective.”“This is not a finished action; this is not a done deal by any means,” Whitman emphasized.Senior defense officials are consulting with U.S. allies in Afghanistan, notably members of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force, he said.McKiernan commands ISAF, which consists of about 45,000 troops, including around 15,000 U.S. troops. I’m, I’m delighted that Alistair, my, my fellow Minister, but the Minister specifically responsible for Afghanistan, is down here in Taunton today.

More territories being taken by the Government so it’s secure, there’s a drop in, in poppy production, more people are accepting that the Afghan Government is the, is the way forwards.And every indicator suggests there’s been good, solid progress made and the Governor was at pains to say lives have not been lost in vain. It's surreal and it all does just feel like it was a dream. To see them up and about and walking as if nothing's gone wrong, with some of them, it's really good.

And that I think is an indication of success, and that’s probably the most positive thing that we’re seeing throughout Afghanistan at the moment, and that is the right interpretation to put on the negotiations that are going on.So that is what the Royal Marines have contributed to, they are part of a bigger picture, most obviously with the Americans, and what we are trying to do is make sure that we protect our national security.But we are going to go and see them today. Here, the partner of medic Sgt Andy Hughes, Mel, talks about how tour has affected them as a family.

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People & Places

06 Apr 10 | 

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And if that can’t be done of course then they will continue to be pursued by the Afghan Security Forces and by us while we’re still there.Now that’s a process when people have been fighting and involved in, in, in a civil conflict, that’s a process that takes the building up of confidence.Villages that had belonged to the Taliban or where they’d put their security in the hands of the Taliban, they will only come over to the Government if they think the Government is going to keep them secure.