UK General Jock Stirrup has told an inquiry that the British armed forces simply did not have enough time to prepare for the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
He focussed on problems with supplying enough body armour, desert combat clothing and boots for frontline troops. General Stirrup said it would have made a "significant difference if the armed forces had had six months to prepare instead of just four.
The air force general said he had informed the government that there were risks involved in the tight schedule. A shortage of body armour was blamed for the death of one of the first British soldiers to get killed in Iraq.
Former prime minister Tony Blair told the inquiry last week that the United Kingdom had to join the invasion of Iraq because of information on the threat posed by Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.
Photo: Sir Jock Stirrup (Wikipedia)
Sir Jock Stirrup
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