CBC, October 10. The Conservative government intends to keep some Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan in a non-combat role beyond Parliament’s 2011 end-date for the military mission, CBC News has learned. Dimitri Soudas, a spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office, told CBC News there will be Canadian troops in Afghanistan after 2011, though “exponentially fewer.” “I would caution you against saying dozens or hundreds or a thousand, there will be exponentially fewer,” Soudas said. “Whether there’s 20 or 60 or 80 or 100, they will not be conducting combat operations.“
CBC, October 10. The Conservative government intends to keep some Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan in a non-combat role beyond Parliament’s 2011 end-date for the military mission, CBC News has learned. Dimitri Soudas, a spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office, told CBC News there will be Canadian troops in Afghanistan after 2011, though “exponentially fewer.” “I would caution you against saying dozens or hundreds or a thousand, there will be exponentially fewer,” Soudas said. “Whether there’s 20 or 60 or 80 or 100, they will not be conducting combat operations.”
CBC, tonight. Amid speculation over a future role for Canadian forces in Kandahar, Canada’s top commander says he will withdraw all of the country’s soldiers from the region by 2011. “The parliamentary motion directs that it will be the end of the military mission in July of 2011. I mean those are the words that are there,” Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Walt Natynczyk told CBC News in an exclusive interview. “And for me it’s pretty clear. What we do for the Canadian Forces are military missions.”
Geddes has analysis. CBC has the full audio of its interview with Walt Natynczyk.