Month: January 2018

An invitation to comment on the headline story on BBC Breakfast News about Russian military capabilities developed into an appeal to the Treasury to maintain spending levels on Britain’s Armed Forces.  As I explained on BBC Five Live Drive later in the day, it doesn’t take much for an army to blunt its blade.  Philip Hammond should know better, since he was Secretary of State for Defence in 2011, when he gave me a letter to hand to the new Defence Secretary in Tripoli.

 

BBC Breakfast News

An invitation to help Sky News and BBC Radio with their coverage of the latest Army Recruitment Campaign.  Live with Dominic Waghorn at lunch time and a separate interview for Alistair Bunkall’s evening news report.

The Army still needs robust young men and women, but has to reflect the society it defends.

Belonging is all about Teamwork

 

The Presidency Council has attempted to seize control of the main border point between Libya and Tunisia from the Amazigh, or Berber, tribe that has held it since the revolution.  The western military command, led by former Defence Minister Usama Juwaili, moved tanks and heavy artillery into the area at the end of last week and there is now an uneasy stand-off during the high-level negotiations.

Control of the border with its many smuggling routes, vital both for security and the economy, was one of our key concerns in 2011.  See Chapter 6 of Belfast to Benghazi for an assessment of the tribal rivalry and strategic risks in the North West of Libya.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/belfast-to-benghazi/rupert-wieloch/9781861515667