London, July 19: With Britain’s prime minister under attack for under-equipping the armed forces, a report adds fuel to the fire, revealing that a shortage of helicopters has forced British forces in Afghanistan to use Russian choppers to fight the Taliban.
A report by The Mail on Sunday claimed that the Ministry of Defense is using civilian Russian-built Mi-8 and Mi-26 transport helicopters with freelance Russian and Ukrainian pilots to transport supplies and soldiers in Afghanistan.
The conservative opposition in Britain has accused Prime Minister Gordon Brown of denying vital resources to British troops in Afghanistan.
The shortage of military hardware and equipment and in particular helicopters has been cited as one of the main reasons behind rising UK casualties in the Afghan war.
Critics argue that the shortage of helicopters has forced troops to travel by road and left them vulnerable to Taliban roadside bombs.
The Prime Minister, however, has defended himself by saying that “British armed forces are better equipped today than at any time… in the past 40 years.”
“In the last two years we have increased helicopter numbers by 60 percent and… capacity by 84 percent,” Brown told the House of Commons.
While the US reportedly has 120 helicopters in Afghanistan, Britain’s armed forces have less than 30.
The Mail also added that the Army has borrowed commercial Russian Antonov aircraft to transfer vehicles and heavy equipment to Afghanistan.
——Agencies