Princess Anne's morale boost

Oct 5, 2006, 14:05 GMT

Britain's Princess Anne visited British troops in Afghanistan this week.

Anne is the first royal to travel to the war-torn country since British soldiers were deployed to the south of Afghanistan earlier this year.

The Princess Royal saw troops in the troubled Helmand province and paid a visit to the NATO headquarters in Afghanistan's capital Kabul during her two-day tour.

Anne - who was accompanied by her husband Rear Admiral Timothy Laurence - also met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and the commander of UK's task force Brigadier Ed Butler.

Butler described the princess's visit as a "great honour" and said he was "immensely proud of all the members of the task force."

He told BBC.co.uk: "I have been hugely humbled by the raw courage and resilience of our soldiers, airmen and aviators. It is clear the Princess Royal is also deeply impressed."

Anne - who is a colonel of several units of the British armed forces - also met officers from the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Royal Signals and the Royal Logistic Corps.

There are currently more than 5,000 British troops in Afghanistan.

(C) BANG Media International