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Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown (L) and Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai (2nd L) meet Afghan and British troops at Kandahar Airbase in Kandahar - Source: Reuters -
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The British government is to spend 150 million pounds ($342
million) on new measures to protect its troops in Afghanistan from
roadside bombs, a government official said.
Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth will announce the measures to
parliament as part of a wider Afghanistan-support package, said the
official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The measure could be accompanied by some cuts in defence spending
as the government tightens its belt to try to rein in a ballooning
public deficit.
The $342 million over three years will be funded through a
reprioritisation of the defence budget, the official said, without
giving further details.
Many of the 100 British troops killed in Afghanistan this year were
victims of roadside bombs planted by the Taliban.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown, facing an uphill battle to win an
election due by next June, has been accused of failing to give
British soldiers enough protection from the bombs.
Brown and Afghan President Hamid Karzai met at an Afghan air base
on Sunday, aiming to fix a relationship that has grown bitter as
the Afghan war grows deadlier and more unpopular.
Brown will make a separate statement to parliament on Monday on
last week's European Union summit and plans to speed up training of
Afghan security forces.
The $342 million package will include funding for new facilities
for training in Britain on countering roadside bombs and a new
analysis centre to interpret data from British surveillance and
intelligence activities in Afghanistan.
British forces are using unmanned planes or drones to track
suspicious activity that could point to bombs being planted.
British forces have also brought in robots to help locate roadside bombs.
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