Prime Minister Tony Blair was facing renewed pressure over Britain's role in the global war on terror on Sunday as a key military figure in an interview called the war in Afghanistan 'cuckoo'.
Critics of Britain's policies in Afghanistan and Iraq were also bolstered by the publication of leaked documents apparently acknowledging that the presence of British troops in the two countries may have fuelled domestic terrorism.
General Charles Guthrie, a former chief of the defence staff, told the Observer newspaper: "Anyone who thought this was going to be a picnic in Afghanistan... to launch the British army in with the numbers there are, while we're still going on in Iraq, is cuckoo."
Lord Guthrie, one of Blair's most trusted commanders before he quit in 2001, also labelled "unrealistic" the Blair's promise to give the army all the extra resources it needed.
He called for more troops, funding and equipment for what he said was a "very, very" over-committed army, the newspaper said.
His comments follow those of General Sir Richard Dannatt, the chief of the general staff, who earlier this month called for troops to be withdrawn from Iraq "sometime soon" because they were contributing to Britain's security problems. Dannatt later toned down his remarks.
Meanwhile, leaked documents published by the Sunday Telegraph said that all of Britain's overseas activities over the next decade must aim to "reduce terror activity, especially that in or directed against the UK".
In an ideal world, "the Muslim would not perceive the UK and its foreign policies as hostile", according to the document, which was penned by senior cabinet officials, presented to a cabinet committee on security earlier this month and circulated to ministers and security chiefs.
It also demands "a significant reduction in the number and intensity of regional conflicts that fuel terror activity".
Blair has consistently denied that Britain's actions in Iraq and Afghanistan are linked to domestic terrorist attacks. Four British Muslim suicide bombers killed themselves and 52 London commuters in July last year.
The prime minister's office declined to comment on the documents, but said: "We recognise that people have used Iraq as an excuse for terrorist activity but clearly plenty of terrorist activity against the UK and its citizens has pre-dated that."
As Britain and the United States face increasing pressure at home to withdraw troops, Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett used a newspaper interview to warn against expectations of major, rapid change.
More than 100 people are dying daily in Iraq and there have already been more US troop fatalities this month -- 98 -- than any since January 2005.
But Beckett told the Sunday Telegraph: "I think you're perhaps a little impatient to see a huge change which I don't think we are yet in.
"I am not conscious that the Americans have made some decision that there is going to be a massive troop withdrawal at all."
She also acknowledged in the Sunday Times that there may be "regrets" over the war in Iraq but added: "There are times when military action seems to be the least worst option and this was one of them."
A further document published on Sunday by the Independent said the British army is so stretched from being in Iraq and Afghanistan that 40 percent of army divisions say they suffer from "serious or critical" problems.
Shortages mean that soldiers have to go on tours of duty before they are properly rested or trained, according to the newspaper, citing a Ministry of Defence (MoD) briefing document.
Lawmakers who have seen the official memo say the problem is threatening the army's ability to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan. The MoD insists that the military is "stretched" and still able to fulfil its orders, the newspaper said.