The British Military and the Iraq and Afghan Wars: Defeat, Popularity and Power
| Published date | 01 September 2019 |
| DOI | 10.1177/2041905819871842 |
| Author | Paul Dixon |
| Date | 01 September 2019 |
22 POLITICAL INSIGHT • SEPTEMBER 2019
Britain’s recent wars – Iraq and
Afghanistan – are often viewed
as primarily political decisions,
with the nation’s leaders choosing
to enter foreign conicts. But the British
military played a pivotal role in pushing for
involvement. The Chilcot inquiry, created
in the wake of the invasion of Iraq, found
remarkable evidence that the military had
pressured for maximum British involvement
in the US-led war. Then facing defeat in Iraq,
they pressured for the escalation of Britain’s
role in Afghanistan.
By 2006 the military was overstretched and
in crisis. But, paradoxically, the military elite
were able to turn this crisis to their advantage
by launching a ‘Militarisation Oensive’ which
blamed politicians for failure and extended
their inuence over policy and among British
society. This led to a spectacular increase
The British Military and
the Iraq and Afghan Wars:
Defeat, Popularity
and Power
There has been a surge in public support for the British military
over the last decade. Paul Dixon examines how Britain’s military
elite blamed politicians for failure in Iraq and Afghanistan, and
successfully extended their influence over policy and s ociety.
in the popularity of the armed forces,
constraining the ability of the government
to shape policy towards the Iraq and Afghan
wars. The growth in the power of the military
is likely to encourage British involvement in
future wars.
The military elite’s role in the Iraq
war
The Chilcot Report argued that the size and
composition of the UK military contribution
to the invasion of Iraq was ‘largely
discretionary’. The US were most concerned
to have Britain’s symbolic rather than military
participation. Shortly before the invasion, US
Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld declared
Political Insight SEPT2019.indd 22 01/08/2019 14:10
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