Afghanistan will not go the way of Iraq when West leaves, says top British army chief --- Lt Gen John Lorimer, deputy commander of the Nato coalition, tells Telegraph "I do not see Afghanistan going that way" amid Isis offensive in Iraq -- Afghanistan will not collapse into chaos like Iraq when international troops depart, the most senior British officer in the country has predicted -- Lt Gen John Lorimer, deputy commander of the Nato coalition, said although there was no direct comparison with the recent crisis in Iraq and the future of Afghanistan, it did emphasise the value of continued international support to the beleaguered country. -- His comments in an interview with the Telegraph came as America continues to debate military action in Iraq, two-and-a-half years after US troops left, to try to repel sweeping Isis advances north of Baghdad. -- Lt Gen Lorimer said the departure of international combat forces from Afghanistan by the end of this year and then the departure of all troops by the end of 2016 was “not a withdrawal, this is a transition”. -- A direct comparison with Iraq “is probably not valid here”, he said. -- “I don’t see it going that way. I do not see Afghanistan going that way.” -- “The mission we are planning and that Nato is planning I think will help continue the development of the Afghan national security forces, which has been so key and which has been pretty successful so far, but we are not finished yet. They want the support.” -- Nato’s combat mission in Afghanistan ends at the end of 2014 and a new mission training and advising forces is being drawn up for the next two years. America has said it wants to keep just under 10,000 troops in Afghanistan next year and Britain is currently planning to keep around 200. -- Lt Gen Lorimer said the situation in Iraq showed the importance of staying to help Afghan forces. - More, Telegraph