The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr William Hague)
I wish to inform the House that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, together with the Ministry of Defence and the Department for International Development, is today publishing the 37th progress report on developments in Afghanistan since November 2010.
On 5 April, the Afghan people went to the polls to elect a new President, as well as their provincial council representatives. On election day, voter turnout was high with preliminary results indicating over 6.6 million validated votes, 36% of which were from women. In what was one of their biggest and most complex security challenges to date, the ANSF successfully secured the presidential elections with millions of Afghans able to cast their vote without significant incident or disruption. Crucially, in terms of maintaining voter confidence and preventing insurgency momentum, there were no high profile attacks (HPAs) on 5 April.
On 26 April, five UK service personnel—Captain Thomas Clarke, Flight Lieutenant Rakesh Chauhan, acting Warrant Officer Class 2 Spencer Faulkner, Corporal James Walters, and Lance Corporal Oliver Thomas—were tragically killed in a helicopter crash south of Kandahar. A full investigation is under way into the incident but there is currently no indication of enemy activity being a contributing factor. The crash resulted in the third biggest single loss of UK life in Afghanistan since 2001. These deaths are a timely reminder that our troops continue to risk their lives in Afghanistan. Their legacy is realised in the tens of thousands of Afghan security forces who they have helped mentor and who are now securing the country’s future. They have protected our security at home and abroad by helping the Afghans take control of their own. Their sacrifice will not be forgotten.
I am placing the report in the Library of the House. It will also be published on the gov.uk website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/afghanistan-progress-reports