英国皇家海军第一海务大臣的圣诞讲话

Ladies and Gentlemen

From training establishments to machinery control rooms, from UK Headquarters to the front line, you have all worked hard, very hard, to deliver operational success in 2009.  

As the future size and shape of the Armed Forces comes under increasing scrutiny, my ability to argue the case for the Navy owes a great deal to your success on operations this year.  You have done outstandingly well.  Whether operating at or under the sea, in the skies or on land, you have made a huge and enduring contribution to the security and defence of our island nation and you should be enormously proud of your achievements, as I am.         

The operation in Afghanistan is now the main effort for defence and supporting the NATO campaign there remains my priority.  The operational honours recently awarded to Royal Marines and sailors for HERRICK 9 reflects their outstanding courage and commitment and the Naval Service contribution there remains significant.  

But Afghanistan is not our only effort.  The UK military contribution to the stability of Iraq now hinges on the Naval Service’s contribution to training and maritime security there.  The Royal Navy is also undertaking a huge range of other operations that protect and promote the national interest.  We have continued to reassure the International Community and our overseas territories through our enduring presence across the globe.  The successful Taurus 09 ATG deployment to the Far East also underpinned the regeneration of important contingent capabilities, not least littoral manoeuvre.  Counter drugs and counter-piracy operations have met with success in frustrating criminality and keeping the high seas safe for aid shipments and the global trade upon which the UK and others depend.  Another year of unbroken CASD marks our unfailing commitment to this operation.

As we look forward to 2010, which I am sure will hold equal challenge, I want to encourage all of you to take pride in what you do and how you do it.  The Royal Navy is among the most operationally capable Navies in the world and we prove it every day.  At the same time, we are seeing real progress with the Astute class, Type 45 and Carrier Strike programmes  and we’ve celebrated some important milestones - 100 years of Naval Aviation and 40 years of the continuous at sea deterrent.      

There is a hugely important human cost to all this and I don’t under-estimate it.  Those that have been injured and the families of those killed on operations remain very much at this festive time in my and the whole Naval family’s thoughts.  I also acknowledge the service of those whose deployed operations are conducted far from the public consciousness, and those who will be deployed over Christmas.  In all 21 warships, Royal Fleet Auxiliaries and submarines, along with elements of the Royal Marines and our Naval Air Squadrons – nearly three thousand sailors and marines - will be separated from their families this festive season.   

This has been a busy, often testing, year but you have met the challenges of the high tempo of operations with characteristic grit, guts and humour.  I wish you and your families well this Christmas and send my sincere thanks to each and every one of you.

First Sea Lord         
17 December 2009
呶，就是这家伙。Ladies and Gentlemen

From training establishments to machinery control rooms, from UK Headquarters to the front line, you have all worked hard, very hard, to deliver operational success in 2009.  

As the future size and shape of the Armed Forces comes under increasing scrutiny, my ability to argue the case for the Navy owes a great deal to your success on operations this year.  You have done outstandingly well.  Whether operating at or under the sea, in the skies or on land, you have made a huge and enduring contribution to the security and defence of our island nation and you should be enormously proud of your achievements, as I am.         

The operation in Afghanistan is now the main effort for defence and supporting the NATO campaign there remains my priority.  The operational honours recently awarded to Royal Marines and sailors for HERRICK 9 reflects their outstanding courage and commitment and the Naval Service contribution there remains significant.  

But Afghanistan is not our only effort.  The UK military contribution to the stability of Iraq now hinges on the Naval Service’s contribution to training and maritime security there.  The Royal Navy is also undertaking a huge range of other operations that protect and promote the national interest.  We have continued to reassure the International Community and our overseas territories through our enduring presence across the globe.  The successful Taurus 09 ATG deployment to the Far East also underpinned the regeneration of important contingent capabilities, not least littoral manoeuvre.  Counter drugs and counter-piracy operations have met with success in frustrating criminality and keeping the high seas safe for aid shipments and the global trade upon which the UK and others depend.  Another year of unbroken CASD marks our unfailing commitment to this operation.

As we look forward to 2010, which I am sure will hold equal challenge, I want to encourage all of you to take pride in what you do and how you do it.  The Royal Navy is among the most operationally capable Navies in the world and we prove it every day.  At the same time, we are seeing real progress with the Astute class, Type 45 and Carrier Strike programmes  and we’ve celebrated some important milestones - 100 years of Naval Aviation and 40 years of the continuous at sea deterrent.      

There is a hugely important human cost to all this and I don’t under-estimate it.  Those that have been injured and the families of those killed on operations remain very much at this festive time in my and the whole Naval family’s thoughts.  I also acknowledge the service of those whose deployed operations are conducted far from the public consciousness, and those who will be deployed over Christmas.  In all 21 warships, Royal Fleet Auxiliaries and submarines, along with elements of the Royal Marines and our Naval Air Squadrons – nearly three thousand sailors and marines - will be separated from their families this festive season.   

This has been a busy, often testing, year but you have met the challenges of the high tempo of operations with characteristic grit, guts and humour.  I wish you and your families well this Christmas and send my sincere thanks to each and every one of you.

First Sea Lord         
17 December 2009
呶，就是这家伙。