Remembrance Day as relevant today as ever

Published on Sunday 8 November 2009 21:12

WITH thoughtfulness and with dignity, the country fell silent at 11am yesterday to honour those who have given their lives to ensure life and liberty at home.

It seemed some years ago that the Remembrance parades were becoming an anachronism, destined to fade as our memories of the two world wars faded. But with Iraq and now Afghanistan, the sacrifice of soldiers has made the observance of the two minute silence as poignant as ever.

This week's ceremonies are acutely focused on events in Afghanistan. Yesterday brought a reminder with confirmation of the death of a soldier serving with the 2nd Battalion, The Rifles, killed in central Helmand province.

Argument over Britain's involvement in Afghanistan is heightening in scope and intensity. If the present strategy is failing, what are the alternatives to be pursued? Should we retreat to a few strategic areas or pull out and concentrate instead on preventing a nuclear Pakistan falling into the hands of Muslim extremists?

In all this soul searching, what has been indisputable is the heroism and commitment of British soldiers. They have been put into an impoverished country in the most difficult circumstances and have undertaken missions requiring the utmost dedication and professionalism. The remembrance minutes and hours belong, as they have belonged down the decades, uniquely and exclusively to them.