4BC Mornings: Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten have put politics aside to visit Afghanistan and mark the end of Australia’s involvement in the war.
But what will be the legacy of our involvement in “the war against terrorism”?
Retired Air Vice-Marshall Peter Criss tells Greg Cary, troops have done a wonderful job in making life extremely awkward for them.
“The reason we entered Afghanistan was because we thought Bin Laden was hiding there and we had hoped to shut down their training,” Criss tells Greg Cary.
“When you’re dealing with a country that is sympathetic to radicalism, it can be very concerning.”
“”At some stage you have to go to that ugly thing called war- otherwise you have to kiss off your way of life.”
“We haven’t finished paying the price for our involvement, because there are a lot of scarred men and women.”
What is the road ahead for our troops as they return home?
Listener Mark tells Greg Cary he has suffered from Post Traumatic Stress since returning home from service in 1999. Mark also says he can’t tell whether he is moving forward with his illness.
Former Australian cricketer Tony Dell and founder of the Stand Tall for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder foundation then joins Greg Cary to discuss whether we have learnt from previous wars as we look after our returned troops.