pbr Dr Liam Fox scored a political own-goal on Saturday, during a visit to Afghanistan to meet military and political leaders.br ppbr The new Defence Secretary was quoted in a newspaper saying that British troops are not in Afghanistan for the "education policy in a broken 13th century country".br ppbr While flying into Kabul his coalition cabinet colleague, International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell took an alternative view, claiming that "education" and development are key to handing over security to the Afghan army.br ppbr The comments preceded a meeting of the cabinet ministers, led by Foreign Secretary William Hague, and the Afghan President Hamid Karzai.br ppbr Luckily for Dr Fox, his comments were soon forgotten, as football superstar David Beckham arrived in Camp Bastion on a surprise visit to meet UK troops.br ppbr Beckham played football with the men, signed autographs and paid tribute to the soldiers for their dedication and courage.