Support our troops in Afghanistan, urges Duke

THE Duke of York has outlined the importance of the Yorkshire Regiment to the region and paid tribute to the vital work our soldiers are doing in Afghanistan.

Prince Andrew spoke to the Yorkshire Post after making his first visit to the headquarters of the 4th Battalion, The Yorkshire Regiment, of which he is Colonel-in-Chief.

His mother, The Queen, is the patron of ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, which is the focus of the Yorkshire Post’s annual Christmas campaign.

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The battalion, which comprises Territorial Army soldiers, currently has 50 troops in Afghanistan and is braced to provide another group next year in an unprecedented back-to-back deployment.

Touching on his own Armed Forces career, the Duke, a former Royal Navy commander who fought on the front line in the Falkland Islands conflict in 1982, said: “In my case it was a simple case of UK territory being invaded and it was recovery.

“It was completely different (to now) – even the sentiment in the UK was different.

“This is a harder sell but probably more important because actually as a leading member of the global community we are being faced with the potential for what is being perpetrated on Afghan soil to be happening in the UK.

“We have to try and prevent that possibility.

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“The primary role of government is to protect its citizens.

“It’s a difficult one to sell, but at the same time, regardless of whether you would agree or disagree with that, we have troops on the ground who are doing an incredibly important brave and loyal duty because that’s what they have been instructed to go and do. And they deserve our support and our compassion for the way they are able to deliver their service.

“They are incredibly well trained to be able to go and deliver what I would describe as committed young people to create a better life for those in Afghanistan who are under duress.

“They are also training the local military in order for them to take control of their own destiny in their country.

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“As soon as that has happened, then they will be coming home.”

The Prince also stressed the importance of the Yorkshire Regiment as well as the region’s historic relationship with the Armed Forces.

The Duke of York said: “I have a service background so I understand how important the services are and I understand their loyalty and I understand what it means to go and serve your country on the front line.

“But the point is things change and move on and this is what I do now. I enjoy the ability to be able to at least have some connectivity with each and every one of the regiments that I am a colonel or colonel-in-chief of – it is a great privilege.”