Foreign secretary David Miliband admitted today that all options were open about sending troops to the crisis-ridden Congo, despite the fact that British forces are already over-stretched in Afghanistan and Iraq.
This one really puts Miliband on the spot as the other Eurpean countries seem quite keen to send troops to the Congo, which is a genuine humanitarian crisis, in stark contrast to Afghanistan and Iraq.
Miliband has been talking tough ever since he got the job and the UK government will be unwilling to see other countries like France and Germany stealing their thunder in the Congo.
But any decision to send UK troops there would provoke near mutiny in the army which is already fuming about ‘overstretch’ and rotten equipment.
The boy Miliband needs to take himself off into a darkened room before he decides on this one.