Britain feared US would 'nuke' Afghanistan: ex-diplomat

[babylonsister]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070618/wl_uk_afp/britainpoliticsmilitaryafghanistanus_070618072937

Britain feared US would 'nuke' Afghanistan: ex-diplomat

Mon Jun 18, 3:29 AM ET

LONDON (AFP) - Britain joined the United States' invasion to oust the Taliban in 2001 because it feared America would "nuke" Afghanistan, the former British ambassador to Washington reportedly told a television documentary to be screened Saturday.

In comments printed in advance in the Daily Mirror tabloid on Monday, Christopher Meyer said that fear explained why Prime Minister Tony Blair chose to stand with US President George W. Bush in his decision to invade Afghanistan in the immediate aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks -- to temper his aggressive battle plans.

"Blair's real concern was that there would be quote unquote 'a knee-jerk reaction' by the Americans ... they would go thundering off and nuke... the place without thinking straight," Meyer reported told the documentary, according to the Mirror.

In other excerpts of the documentary, printed in The Observer newspaper on Sunday, members of Blair's inner circle said the prime minister agreed to commit troops to the March 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq despite believing that the United States had failed to prepare adequately for post-war reconstruction.

[MADem]

1. Was he being hyperbolic or serious? nt

[acmavm]

2. Bullshit. I don't mean that I put it past the neocons to nuke

anybody, I mean I don't believe this for a minute. Poodle thought there would be a whole lot of glory being a 'war leader'. He features himself (or did anyway) as the reincarnation of Winston Churchill.

[babylonsister]

3. Not according to this; he may put on a 'jolly good show':

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=1126672