'Afghan war has left Brit defence under-resourced'

London, Nov 26: Coming down heavily on Prime Minster Gordon Brown for funding the Afghan mission, former head of Britain's MI6 foreign intelligence service said that mission has squeezed the nation's defence budget.

"Our armed forces have been under-resourced. This is a basic fact from which there really is no escape. The Treasury has been squeezing the defence budget for approximately eight years," said Richard Dearlove, MI6 chief from 1999 to 2004.

Calling the government's policy of national security as the reason for war against Taliban insurgents as half-hearted, Dearlove said the government has failed to explain why the nation was at war.

Refuting Dearlove's statement a Downing Street spokesman said that funding has increased from GBP 2.5 billion (EUR 2.7 billion, USD 4.1 billion) in 2008-09 to GBP 3.5 billion in 2009-10.

Britain has offered to add 500 troops more to its current 9,000 troops in Afghanistan.

OneIndia News