Canada won't 'cut and run' from Afghanistan: PM
OTTAWA — Canada won't "cut and run'' from Afghanistan, says Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and there's no need for a House of Commons debate that could potentially sap the morale of troops overseas.
Harper suggested Tuesday that a parliamentary vote on the mission would be a foregone conclusion anyway because his government supports it and he expects the Liberals, who made the original commitment, to also support it.
"Canadians don't cut and run at the first sign of trouble,'' he said. "And when we send troops into the field I expect Canadians to support those troops, in particular those who made that decision.''
He said launching a Commons debate could cast doubt on the deployment.
"It is not the intention of this government to start to question that mission when our troops are in danger,'' he said.
"To do so would not only be not in the best interests of Canada's international reputation... it would be a betrayal of the brave men and women we have in the field who are in danger.''
The former Liberal government signed on last year for a NATO mission in Afghanistan involving about 2,200 soldiers. The Canadians are stationed in the troubled south of the country commanding an international brigade charged with the double duty of reconstruction and hunting down insurgents.
Harper said Canadians should be reminded why the mission is important and why Canadian troops are there.
"I believe it is always important to explain a military mission. It is important to explain a commitment to the international community and the population of Afghanistan.''
After the Liberal government agreed to the mission last summer, then-defence minister Bill Graham made a series of speeches across the country, warning that it would be a dangerous assignment and that there would be casualties.
Those warnings seem to have gone unheeded, though, lost in the election static. A series of incidents in Afghanistan in recent days, in which soldiers have been killed and wounded, prompted renewed calls for a formal debate and parliamentary approval for the mission.
But Harper said the commitment is there and won't be changed.
"We will not be in any way backtracking from an obligation which has been undertaken.''
NATO has said that rebuilding Afghanistan could take a decade, a time line that has been endorsed by Canadian generals.
Harper said Canada hasn't made a 10-year commitment and the mission will be reassessed after two six-month rotations.
"The exact involvement of our commitment does change every year or so... and we'll be reviewing those obligations at the appropriate time in the future.''
OTTAWA — Canada won't "cut and run'' from Afghanistan, says Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and there's no need for a House of Commons debate that could potentially sap the morale of troops overseas.
Harper suggested Tuesday that a parliamentary vote on the mission would be a foregone conclusion anyway because his government supports it and he expects the Liberals, who made the original commitment, to also support it.
"Canadians don't cut and run at the first sign of trouble,'' he said. "And when we send troops into the field I expect Canadians to support those troops, in particular those who made that decision.''
He said launching a Commons debate could cast doubt on the deployment.
"It is not the intention of this government to start to question that mission when our troops are in danger,'' he said.
"To do so would not only be not in the best interests of Canada's international reputation... it would be a betrayal of the brave men and women we have in the field who are in danger.''
The former Liberal government signed on last year for a NATO mission in Afghanistan involving about 2,200 soldiers. The Canadians are stationed in the troubled south of the country commanding an international brigade charged with the double duty of reconstruction and hunting down insurgents.
Harper said Canadians should be reminded why the mission is important and why Canadian troops are there.
"I believe it is always important to explain a military mission. It is important to explain a commitment to the international community and the population of Afghanistan.''
After the Liberal government agreed to the mission last summer, then-defence minister Bill Graham made a series of speeches across the country, warning that it would be a dangerous assignment and that there would be casualties.
Those warnings seem to have gone unheeded, though, lost in the election static. A series of incidents in Afghanistan in recent days, in which soldiers have been killed and wounded, prompted renewed calls for a formal debate and parliamentary approval for the mission.
But Harper said the commitment is there and won't be changed.
"We will not be in any way backtracking from an obligation which has been undertaken.''
NATO has said that rebuilding Afghanistan could take a decade, a time line that has been endorsed by Canadian generals.
Harper said Canada hasn't made a 10-year commitment and the mission will be reassessed after two six-month rotations.
"The exact involvement of our commitment does change every year or so... and we'll be reviewing those obligations at the appropriate time in the future.''
