Defence chief attacks 'smug' UK military

Britain's armed forces have been "smug" and "complacent" about their ability to mount counter-insurgency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup, the chief of the defence staff.

He said there had been a tendency to "rest on your laurels" because of their long experience in Malaysia, Oman and Northern Ireland.

In an interview with the Economist magazine published today, he also acknowledged that the British had been criticised by some Americans over their performance in Afghanistan. His remarks undermine a basic tenet in UK military thinking that Britain has a grasp of counter-insurgency tactics which America lacks.

Stirrup said: "I think that we were a bit too complacent about our experiences in Northern Ireland and certainly, on occasion, we were a bit too smug about those experiences. You are only as good as your next success, not your last one. You can never rest on your laurels and I think we may have done that."

A "fundamental reappraisal" of Britain's counter-insurgency training, doctrine and structures would be completed shortly. He accepted there had been criticism from the US and cautioned that such differences must not be allowed to get out of hand. "If you go around and ask enough Americans you will find some who are critical to a degree or other of the way that the British do things and the approach that the British take," he said.

"We have to understand that our military structures are different, our social structures within our countries are different, and therefore there are inevitable differences in the way we approach some of our tasks."