Cameron arrives in Afghanistan
David Cameron first visited Afghanistan last year
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Wednesday, 01, Aug 2007 01:27
David Cameron has arrived in Afghanistan to begin his second visit to the wartorn south Asian country.
During his two-day fact-finding trip the Conservative party leader is expected to meet local officials and military commanders, as well as British and other Nato troops stationed in the volatile southern Helmand province.
"I came a year ago and I wanted to come again to see the progress that is being made both in terms of the political process in Kabul and the valuable work that our troops are doing in Helmand," he said upon arrival.
"It is vital work and it is vital that we succeed in helping the democratic government of Afghanistan."
Six UK troops died in Afghanistan in July alone, taking the total number of British military personnel deaths to 68 since the US-led invasion in 2001.
But as he flew into the capital, Kabul, question marks remained over growing discontent in some sections of his party over his modernisation of the party.
Yesterday he suspended parliamentary candidate Ali Miraj for openly criticising his leadership style; a day after reportedly being rejected for a peerage.
Mr Cameron attracted further criticism last week during a similar fact-finding trip to Rwanda, which came as his Witney constituents battled with widespread flooding in Oxfordshire.
The leader, who is due to meet the commander of Nato forces in Afghanistan – American general Dan McNeill – and Britain's ambassador Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles, had originally intended to mirror a trip made last week by foreign secretary David Miliband by visiting Pakistan.
But the visit was called off due to ongoing tensions over president Pervez Musharraf's administration.