PM defiant over troop helicopters

Lord Malloch-Brown, whose Foreign Office brief includes Afghanistan, issued a hurried clarification on Wednesday morning after his remarks re-opened the row over the UK military's resources.

The Prime Minister later dismissed any suggestion that British lives were being lost due to a shortage of helicopters, insisting troops had all the resources they needed for the Operation Panther's Claw offensive in central Helmand.

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Lord Malloch-Brown said: "We definitely don't have enough helicopters.

"When you have these modern operations and insurgent strikes what you need, above all else, is mobility."

But he released a further statement on Wednesday - shortly before the Prime Minister was to face a press conference in Downing Street - saying that he wanted to "clarify" his comments.

"On the issue of helicopters in Afghanistan, I was making the point - as the Prime Minister and commanders on the ground have also done - that while there are without doubt sufficient resources in place for current operations, we should always do what we can to make more available on the frontline," he said.

He said that the Government had already increased the numbers of helicopters deployed in the country, with more due in the coming months.

"I am satisfied that Operation Panther's Claw has the resources it needs to be successful," he said. "I think the fact that it is making progress at the moment and yielding results already shows that that is the case. I am confident that we will bring this operation to a successful outcome."

"It is very important to recognise what the commanders are saying on the ground, the increase we have already made in helicopters, and what we are going to do in future months."