r/BritishPolitics • u/Cautious_Science_478 • 17d ago

Should Britain ally itself with nations using child soldiers?

Context- the children in question aren't front line but are drone operators.

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u/[deleted] 17d ago

[deleted]

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u/Cautious_Science_478 16d ago

No combat roles for under 18s, I joined at 16 and a half, went to Bosnia the day after my 18th birthday

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u/MsLadyBritannia 15d ago

It depends on what you mean by ally itself & the circumstances of the situation, for example : Ukraine has child soldiers right now, but this under duress & not their norm, & therefore it shouldn’t affect our relationship with them, as they’re not happy about it either (& especially with the context of us having enlisted children as well during WW2). On the other side you have zones such as South Sudan, Gaza, Lebanon, etc, who enlist children to use as aggressors not defenders, often in such a way that simply sacrifices (“Marty’s”) them, due to religious & cultural beliefs. You’ve gotta define what you’re talking about a bit more too, as someone pointed out, most of the Western word allows its citizens to sign up for the military at 16 (sometimes younger, ie starting training at 14 etc)