Britain must not "walk away" from Afghanistan: Brown

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Friday that Britain must not "walk away" from Afghanistan despite the number of British troops killed in the conflict rising to 230 since the mission began in 2001.

"When the main terrorist threat facing Britain emanates from Afghanistan and Pakistan; and when (al Qaida) continue to train and plot attacks on Britain from the region, we can not, must not and will not walk away," Brown said.

The prime minister was speaking after five British soldiers were shot dead by an Afghan policeman whom the Taliban claim was working for them.

Despite the losses, Brown said British troops must continue to train the Afghan army "because it is what distinguishes a liberating army from an army of occupation."

Brown also urged other members of the international mission in Afghanistan not to give up, adding: "We entered together eight years ago. We must persist together, in our different ways we must all contribute. In the end, we will succeed or fail together, and we will succeed."

Brown is expected to deliver another message to Afghan President Hamid Karzai that continued support from the international community depends on "the scale of his ambition and the degree of his achievement" relating to security, governance, reconciliation and economic development.

Brown is under pressure from opposition parties to explain more clearly why Britain's continued presence in Afghanistan is justified, as a new YouGov poll showed that support for the conflict was declining.

Seventy-three percent of those surveyed for Channel 4 News wanted British troops to come home -- up from 62 percent two weeks ago.

Source: Xinhua