Brown visits frontline Afghanistan

By Carole Walker
BBC News, in Afghanistan

Gordon Brown met troops at Camp Bastion in Helmand province

Gordon Brown is a man more at home with the bleak statistics of recession than the grim toll of war.

Pale and lined after an overnight flight direct from the European summit, he squinted from the dust and sun of the Afghan desert.

But courage is a favourite theme of this prime minister - he has written a book about it - and he told the assembled British troops their courage was second to none.

Some of those he met were friends of the four marines killed in the latest attacks.

Three died when a 13-year-old boy with a wheelbarrow approached their foot patrol and set off an explosion.

Mr Brown was clearly set on demonstrating some courage of his own, taking a helicopter flight to the Roshan lookout post on the frontline.

He looked out over the hostile terrain where British troops face daily attack. The latest casualties occurred in the next valley.

Focus shift

The prime minister has ordered a review of the entire Afghan policy.

The so called "inkspot" strategy, creating secure zones to allow the rebuilding of infrastructure and basic services, has achieved some success.

Mr Brown visited Musa Qala which has seen significant improvements since it was recaptured by the British a year ago.

He also visited the Roshan Tower lookout post

But the number and sophistication of the attacks by insurgents are growing.

Mr Brown wants to shift the focus of the British mission to tackle directly what he calls the "chain of terror" which begins across the border in Pakistan.

He wants to change the "coverage" of troops on the ground. Such a move though would almost certainly put more British soldiers at greater risk of attack.

I am told the British review has "synergy" with the US review headed by General Petraeus.

Barak Obama has already signalled that when he takes up the US presidency next year he wants thousands more American and Allied troops for a concerted drive against the Taleban.

He will almost certainly put pressure on Britain to provide far more than the few hundred reinforcements which have arrived here in recent weeks.

At his news conference with President Karzai, Mr Brown spoke of the need for more burden sharing.

But he may not wish the new transatlantic relationship to be marred by turning down Mr Obama's first request.