LONDON: The head of Britain's armed forces has warned that the West can never defeat al-Qaida and other militant Islamic groups, only contain them.
Gen. David Richards is reported as saying in interviews with British media published Sunday that defeating Islamist militancy is ``unnecessary and would never be achieved.''
But The Sunday Telegraph quoted him as saying that although a clear-cut victory is impossible, forces can still contain al-Qaida to an extent that Britons can lead secure lives.
Richards added that Britain did not "fully understand what was at stake'' in Afghanistan and that the Afghan people were beginning to tire of NATO's inability to deliver on its promises.
Gen. David Richards is reported as saying in interviews with British media published Sunday that defeating Islamist militancy is ``unnecessary and would never be achieved.''
But The Sunday Telegraph quoted him as saying that although a clear-cut victory is impossible, forces can still contain al-Qaida to an extent that Britons can lead secure lives.
Richards added that Britain did not "fully understand what was at stake'' in Afghanistan and that the Afghan people were beginning to tire of NATO's inability to deliver on its promises.
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