Canadians to quit Afghanistan by 2011

[SO19]

Canadians to quit Afghanistan

By Thomas Harding
Last Updated: 7:31am GMT 22/02/2008

Nato's unity in Afghanistan was unravelling last night as Canada announced the date it is to withdraw its troops.

After months of failing to get other nations to share the burden of intense combat in southern Afghanistan, Ottawa announced that all its troops would be out by 2011.

Stephen Harper, the prime minister, has grown increasingly frustrated that Canada's 2,500 troops take the brunt of the fighting and that his country's death toll of 78 is the third highest after those of Britain and America.

His minority Conservative government finally bowed to a key Liberal opposition demand yesterday to confirm that "our commitment is not open-ended".

The decision came after Lord Robertson, the former Nato secretary general who took the organisation into Afghanistan, warned it was developing into a two-tier alliance.

"There cannot be one tier for those to carry burdens and the bloody sacrifice and a tier for those who benefit from that contribution. Collective security is what it means - collective," he told a Chatham House conference.

It is thought that France is considering a plan to send a battalion to Kandahar province to assist Canada.

But its decision, if it comes, seems too late to prevent the Canadian withdrawal.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jh ... ada122.xml

[df2inaus]

Don't read too much into it SO19, Harper had no choice to say it, he's up for re-election in an over-urbanized country where most people didn't even know we had an army.

Harper is the best friend the Canadian Army's ever had and supports the soldiers. He's even attended passing off parades and his visited Canadian soldiers in Afganistan several times.

[Alfa]

SO19's been missing in action for quite a while now so I don't think you'll be getting a reply df2inaus.