A:
I'm not too aware of the event, as it's usually surrounded by lots of hype and becomes hard to listen to whenever troop deployment comes up. But do I believe it was purely for what they said? Absolutely not! Sending a vast number of people anywhere is costly and has to be justified by more than a few people.
So when a government does it, there are always other interests. Is that a few people in a board room hoping for profit? A hidden and sanctioned mission? Who knows.. but truthfully, any smart leader of a group large enough to be charged with overseeing ops like that would have multiple reasons for any official actions.
Politics aside, it's just good bisness sense, and it's ultimately safer. If something goes awry, you want something you can do to not make your efforts be completely wasted.
Q:
You can be baked any pie.. what kind would you choose?
If you discovered that killing a friend would save someone else, would you do it?