WITH the "moment of truth", in the words of President George W Bush, arriving for the world today over disarming Iraq, our thoughts should turn to the British forces waiting in the Gulf to do battle.

Reports from British troops massing in the Kuwaiti desert and their American counterparts indicate they are heading into battle in a mood of resignation.

There is, apparently, none of the excitement that hung in the air before the last war with Saddam Hussein 12 years ago. Nor is there any of the feeling of moral purpose that preceded the deployment in Kosovo in 1999.

Instead, this action is being viewed as a task to be done. The troops have been trained to do it, are ready for it, and want to finish the job.

That's why the call from the family of mum-of-three Jennifer Poyner, a nurse in the Territorial Army for 16 years, strikes a chord with us today.

They want the public to back Jennifer and her colleagues and send them messages of support via the Ministry of Defence's E-bluey postal system.

As Mrs Poyner's husband Alan says: "At the end of the day they're only doing their job. They haven't chosen this war."

And for that reason alone, they deserve messages of goodwill from the British public.