THE British Army is making a long-term commitment to the people of Afghanistan by helping to train members of the country’s newly formed national Army.

Members of the 2nd battalion The Yorkshire Regiment (Green Howards) are mentoring the Afghan army, started 19 months ago.

The role is carried out by small groups of soldiers and is part of the Operational Mentoring Liaison Teams (OMLT) operation.

Cpl Carl Peterson, 27, who lives in the South Cliff area of Scarborough, has been heavily involved in the process which he described as “on the job training” in the field.

He said: “It is a steep learning curve for them.

“Some are really good and they need to learn to train themselves. If we have got someone really good, we will use him to teach the others.”

Cpl Peterson said it would be a long process before the British withdrew from Afghanistan and that would only happen when the people were capable of taking over.

He said: “If you look at Northern Ireland. If we’d pulled out too soon it would not have worked. In Bosnia we put the time and effort in before we pulled the troops out. It’s always a long process. If this wasn’t happening I wouldn’t have a job.”

Fellow Scarborough soldier, Pte Tim Gargan, who spent his 23rd birthday in Afghanistan, is also involved in mentoring Afghan troops in the Sangin district of the Helmand province.

He said: “I’m really enjoying the OMLT work, it’s different. I’ve seen and done things in the last three months that the general population back home will never experience.

“Some of it is good and some of it is bad but overall it is a good experience. It’s good to be doing a job where you know you are actually making a difference.”

From The Scarborough Evening News on Tuesday, January 8, 2008.