9.4 |
June 2005 to May 2006
on with it
and were worth listening to anyway. I would say this, the political
process
generally,
the external and international aspects of handling Iraq, whether it
was the
UN, the
regional groupings, working with the neighbours, the Saudis and
others;
I think
these were all areas where there was a British expertise and
experience
which the
Americans paid attention to.”336
702.
Mr Blair
spoke to Mr Maliki on 28 April to congratulate him and assure
him that
the UK
would do everything possible to support and help him as he
addressed the
challenging
situation facing him.337
703.
Mr Blair
added that the UK needed Mr Maliki’s assistance in addressing
the
political
situation in Basra. Mr Maliki said that he was doing his best
to achieve
reconciliation
between all parties and would continue to work at it. In return, he
asked
the UK to
accelerate the training of Iraqi Security Forces.
704.
On 1 May, US
forces symbolically handed over responsibility for security
in
Helmand
Province, southern Afghanistan, to UK troops taking command of its
Provincial
Reconstruction
Team.338
The full
complement of 3,300 UK troops, led by 16 Air Assault
Brigade,
was due to be in place by June.
705.
Dr Reid
described their mission as “to protect the reconstruction and
development
of the
Afghan economy, democratic government and security
forces”.
706.
In preparation
for a video conference with President Bush, on 2 May
Mr Phillipson
told
Mr Blair that:
“We’ve
heard rumblings from the US system about UK failure to grip the
security
situation
in what they regard as a strategically vital part of Iraq
…”339
707.
In the video
conference with President Bush, Mr Blair said that once a new
Iraqi
Government
was in place, the next step would be “to persuade the Sunni
insurgency to
wind itself
down, building on Sunni inclusion in a government for national
security”.340
336
Private
hearing, 3 September 2010, pages 85-86.
337
Letter
Banner to Siddiq, 28 April 2006, ‘Nouri al-Maliki’.
338
BBC
News, 1 May
2006, UK troops
take over Afghan duties.
339
Minute
Phillipson to Prime Minister, 2 May 2006, ‘VTC with President Bush,
1615 2 May 2006’.
340
Letter
Banner to Hayes, 2 May 2006, ‘Prime Minister’s VTC with President
Bush, 2 May:
Middle East issues’.
603