Commanding Officer's Pre Tour Message

Corporal Glyn Sephton for Commanding Officer

14 October 2011

 

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Welcome to the 5 RIFLES's Wristband Appeal Webpage. I hope that this webpage will prove to be an excellent way of keeping you informed of what we are doing over the coming months in Helmand. Inevitably we can't cover everything here; and we can't compete with CNN or the BBC for 24/7 up-to-date news; but I hope that we can provide a bit of 'ground-truth' that gives you all an idea of what's going on at grass-roots level and, perhaps most importantly for families and loved ones left at home, dispel any unhelpful gossip or rumours.

The Op HERRICK 15 tour will no doubt be challenging and rewarding in equal measure. The current task Force Helmand, which includes 1 RIFLES, has done a fantastic job and the campaign is progressing well. It rarely grabs the headlines and therefore is hard to track, but gradually the security situation for the ordinary people of Helmand is improving, thanks to the hard work and commitment of the Afghan Forces, ISAF and the people themselves. We will do our utmost to continue this excellent work.

During our tour we will be increasingly focused on the continuing development of Afghan preserve and if possible enhance.

I will do my best to keep this updated regularly; though I'll make no firm promises till I get out there! In the mean time may I wish all of our families and friends the very best of fortune for the time we are away; and many thanks for your continued support.

Tom Copinger-Symes

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National Security Forces and continuing the transition to Afghan leadership for security and other governance issues. Our Riflemen (a phrase that includes all who serve with the 5 RIFLES Battlegroup, irrespective of rank, gender or capbadge) will be right at the heart of this effort and we have a critical role in setting the conditions for a sustainable security situation in Afghanistan. And we leave for Helmand in absolutely no doubt that what we do is not only in the best interests of the Afghan people, but it is also very clearly in the UK's national interest.

5 RIFLES has performed well throughout our excellent pre-deployment training; it has been long, testing, and we're glad it's now over; but I have never felt so well prepared for an operation. And I have every confidence in our Riflemen - they are well-trained; well-equipped; and in good heart. No doubt there will be some tough days ahead, but we are a good team; we are amongst friends; and we have our Regiment's extraordinary reputation to