UK National News - New special forces regiment to tackle terrorism

05 April 2005

New special forces regiment to tackle terrorism

The formation of a new Army special forces regiment, tasked with meeting the threat of international terrorism, was announced today by Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon.

In a written statement to Parliament, Mr Hoon declared the 'Special Reconnaissance Regiment' (SRR) will be operational from April 6 2005.

Mr Hoon said: "The creation of the Special Reconnaissance Regiment demonstrates our commitment to shaping our armed forces to meet the ongoing challenge of tackling international terrorism. The new regiment will help to meet the growing need for special reconnaissance capability."

The new regiment has been formed to meet a growing worldwide demand for special reconnaissance capability - as announced in the Strategic Defence Review New Chapter in July 2002.

The regiment will ensure improved support to international expeditionary operations at a time when it is most needed in the ongoing fight against international terrorism. Special reconnaissance covers a wide range of specialist skills and activities related to covert surveillance.

The SRR will draw personnel from existing capabilities and recruit new volunteers from serving members of the armed forces where necessary.

Due to the specialist nature of the unit it will come under the command of Director Special Forces and be a part of the UK Special Forces group.

(GB)