The tensions between British military commanders in Iraq and their US allies have been revealed in new leaked documents.

In the papers, obtained by the Daily Telegraph, the British chief of staff in Iraq, Colonel J.K.Tanner, described his US military counterparts as "a group of Martians" for whom "dialogue is alien". He added: "Despite our so-called 'special relationship,' I reckon we were treated no differently to the Portuguese."

The senior UK commander in the country, Major General Andrew Stewart, revealed how he spent "a significant amount of my time" "evading" and "refusing" orders from his US superiors.

The frank remarks were made in official interviews conducted by the Ministry of Defence with Army figures who had just returned from Operations Telic 2 and 3 - the first year of "peacekeeping" operations in Iraq, from May 2003 to May 2004.

The documents emerged the day before the first public hearings by the long-awaited Iraq war inquiry.

Sir John Chilcot, the inquiry's chairman, promised to produce a "full and insightful" account of how Britain was taken to war.

He said he and his team would remain open minded and impartial and would not produce a "whitewash".

"When you set up an independent inquiry of this sort, you set the members of it free to do what they will," he said.

"Our determination is to do not merely a thorough job but one that is frank and will bear public scrutiny.

"All five members of the committee are now completely independent from different perspectives and bodies of experience."

He emphasised that while his inquiry would not be able to rule on the legality of the war it would be able to assess the quality of the decision-making.

He said: "It is much closer to high policy decisions - was this a wise decision? Was it well-taken? Was it founded on good advice and good information and analysis?"

Senior political and military figures will appear before the inquiry from Tuesday, with former prime minister Tony Blair expected to give evidence in the new year.

 

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