LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Saturday that plans were in place for a military strike against Afghanistan's ruling Taliban.
``Things are coming into place, although obviously the timing on any such action is a matter we must discuss with our close allies,'' Blair told reporters as he returned to Britain after a whirlwind tour to bolster support from allies on the Afghan borders. (Map)
Speaking to journalists aboard his aircraft, the British premier said , ``The trap is being set around the Taliban regime in the sense that we are cutting off their sources of financing and supply and we have built a very strong diplomatic and political coalition in the area,'' he said.
Echoing President Bush's warning to the Taliban earlier on Saturday that ``time is running out,'' Blair said Afghanistan's leadership had had several weeks to respond to U.S. demands to hand over bin Laden and knew ``perfectly well what they had to do.''
He said discussions in the region had made it clear the links between bin Laden and the Taliban were enormous.
He added it was important for Britain to become involved in the U.S. ``war on terrorism'' for three reasons: there was no doubt large European countries would be targeted; to restore confidence in the international economy; and to stop heroin entering Britain, 90 percent of which came from Afghanistan.
Blair wound up his whirlwind tour of Russia, Pakistan and India on Saturday in New Delhi, where he expressed sympathy for the 38 victims of this week's suicide car bombing in Indian Kashmir.
``Such outrages have no place in any civilized society and those that perpetrate them should be brought to justice,'' he said.
MAP CAPTION:
The US currently has 30,000 other military personnel, 350 aircraft and two aircraft carriers in the region, with two more battle groups on the way. A UK aircraft carrier is also in the area, taking part in major military exercises in Oman and available for action.