Canadian Troops in Afghanistan: Taking a Hard Look at a Hard Mission
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Canadian Troops in Afghanistan: Taking a Hard Look at a Hard Mission An Interim Report of the Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence February 2007 MEMBERSHIP 39th Parliament – 1st Session STANDING COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL SECURITY AND DEFENCE The Honourable Colin Kenny, Chair The Honourable Michael A. Meighen, Deputy Chair and The Honourable Norman K. Atkins The Honourable Tommy Banks The Honourable Joseph A. Day The Honourable Wilfred P. Moore The Honourable Gerry St. Germain (*) The Honourable David Tkachuk (member since November 29, 2006) The Honourable Rod A.A. Zimmer *The Honourable Marjory Lebreton, P.C., (or the Honourable Gerald Comeau) *The Honourable Daniel Hays (or the Honourable Joan Fraser) *Ex Officio Members Other Senators who participated during the 39th Parliament – 1st Session: The Honourable George Baker The Honourable Janis G. Johnson The Honourable Pierre Claude Nolin The Honourable Hugh Segal MEMBERSHIP 38th Parliament – 1st Session STANDING COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL SECURITY AND DEFENCE The Honourable Colin Kenny, Chair The Honourable J. Michael Forrestall, Deputy Chair and The Honourable Norman K. Atkins The Honourable Tommy Banks The Honourable Jane Cordy The Honourable Joseph A. Day The Honourable Michael A. Meighen The Honourable Jim Munson The Honourable Pierre Claude Nolin *The Honourable Jack Austin, P.C. (or the Honourable William Rompkey, P.C.) *The Honourable Noël A. Kinsella (or the Honourable Terry Stratton) *Ex Officio Members Other Senators who participated during the 38th Parliament – 1st Session: The Honourable Ione Christensen The Honourable Anne C. Cools The Honourable Percy Downe The Honourable Rose-Marie Losier-Cool The Honourable John Lynch-Staunton The Honourable Terry M. Mercer The Honourable Wilfred P. Moore The Honourable Donald H. Oliver The Honourable Gerard A. Phalen The Honourable William Rompkey The Honourable Peter A. Stollery The Honourable David Tkachuk The Honourable Marilyn Trenholme Counsell MEMBERSHIP 37th Parliament – 3rd Session STANDING COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL SECURITY AND DEFENCE The Honourable Colin Kenny, Chair The Honourable J. Michael Forrestall, Deputy Chair and The Honourable Norman K. Atkins The Honourable Tommy Banks The Honourable Jane Cordy The Honourable Joseph A. Day The Honourable Michael A. Meighen The Honourable Jim Munson The Honourable David P. Smith, P.C. *The Honourable Jack Austin, P.C. (or the Honourable William Rompkey, P.C.) *The Honourable John Lynch-Staunton (or the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella) *Ex Officio Members MEMBERSHIP 37th Parliament – 2nd Session STANDING COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL SECURITY AND DEFENCE The Honourable Colin Kenny, Chair The Honourable J. Michael Forrestall, Deputy Chair and The Honourable Norman K. Atkins The Honourable Tommy Banks The Honourable Jane Cordy The Honourable Joseph A. Day The Honourable Michael A. Meighen The Honourable David P. Smith, P.C. The Honourable John (Jack) Wiebe *The Honourable Sharon Carstairs, P.C. (or the Honourable Fernand Robichaud, P.C.) *The Honourable John Lynch-Staunton (or the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella) *Ex Officio Members MEMBERSHIP 37th Parliament – 1st Session STANDING COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL SECURITY AND DEFENCE The Honourable Colin Kenny, Chair The Honourable J. Michael Forrestall, Deputy Chair and The Honourable Norman K. Atkins The Honourable Tommy Banks The Honourable Jane Cordy The Honourable Joseph A. Day The Honourable Laurier L. LaPierre The Honourable Michael A. Meighen The Honourable John (Jack) Wiebe *The Honourable Sharon Carstairs, P.C. (or the Honourable Fernand Robichaud, P.C.) *The Honourable John Lynch-Staunton (or the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella) *Ex Officio Members TABLE OF CONTENTS Canada’s Involvement in Afghanistan.......................................................................1 The Rationale Behind Canada’s Involvement in Afghanistan ..................................2 Looking for Answers .................................................................................................3 The Challenges...........................................................................................................4 Problem 1: Warrior Culture...................................................................................4 Problem 2: Home Team Advantage .......................................................................4 Problem 3: Away Team Disadvantage...................................................................5 Problem 4: Geography and Time ...........................................................................5 Problem 5: Can we win, given how the map is drawn? .........................................6 Problem 6: Change Comes Slowly in Medieval Societies....................................6 Problem 7: The Enemy is Rich...............................................................................7 Problem 8: The Society We are Trying to Rebuild is Corrupt..............................7 Problem 9: Too Many Innocent People Killed.......................................................7 Problem 10: We Don’t Have a (Visible) Development Program .........................8 Problem 11: The Perception That Life for People in Kandahar is More Fraught with Peril Because We are There ...........................................................................9 Problem 12: If This is a Litmus Test for the New NATO, the Results Aren’t Impressive So Far .................................................................................................10 Problem 13: Afghanistan Does Not Want to be Rebuilt in Canada’s Image.......10 So, Why Are We Still Over There? .........................................................................11 Proof of Success.......................................................................................................11 The Committee’s Perception....................................................................................13 Recommendations....................................................................................................15 APPENDIX I............................................................................................................17 Order of Reference ...............................................................................................17 APPENDIX II ..........................................................................................................19 Biographies of Committee Members ...................................................................19 APPENDIX III.........................................................................................................31 Biographies of the Committee Secretariat............................................................31 Canadian Troops in Afghanistan: Taking a Hard Look at a Hard Mission Canadian Troops in Afghanistan: Taking a Hard Look at a Hard Mission Afghans have been both battered by foreign occupiers and tyrannized by extreme elements of their own countrymen for as long as its citizens can remember. The Russians bludgeoned Afghanistan in the ‘80s. The Americans helped drive the Russians out in 1989 and then largely abandoned the Afghans in the ‘90s. The Taliban moved into the void and ruled with merciless fervor until overpowered by the Americans and their Northern Alliance allies in 2001. An election in 2004 brought a new president to power in Kabul and, just under a year later, a new government was elected. But the Taliban continue to resist, particularly in three southern provinces, including Kandahar. While efforts are being made to eliminate corruption and solidify democratic institutions throughout the country, real power resides largely in the hands of warlords from various tribes. Any attempts to centralize control are complicated by the fact that Afghanistan’s economy is almost totally dependent on the sale of opium, and the opium marketplace is controlled by the warlords and, increasingly, the Taliban. Tens of thousands of innocent people have died during the struggle for power in Afghanistan. More are being lost every day. Canada’s Involvement in Afghanistan Canada’s involvement in Afghanistan has expanded dramatically since it first participated in the International Security Assistance Force (mandated by the United Nations in late 2001). While Canada did participate in the war on terror in Afghanistan during the first part of 2002, our first deployment under ISAF occurred in the summer of 2003. That mission, Operation Athena as named by the Canadian Forces - was largely undertaken within the relatively safe confines of the capital city of Kabul, and attracted little attention in Canada. Canada began expanding our forces in Afghanistan in the summer of 2005, preparing for combat in the far more dangerous province of Kandahar, home of the Taliban. For the past year, approximately 2,500 members of the Canadian Forces have taken a lead combat role in Kandahar Province under Operation Archer, aided and augmented primarily by troops from Britain and the Netherlands, who are 1 Canadian Troops in Afghanistan: Taking a Hard Look at a Hard Mission conducting operations in adjoining southern provinces. In August 2006, a new NATO command assumed responsibility for operations in this part of Afghanistan while still working in close conjunction with the U.S.-led Operation Enduring Freedom. These NATO allies are often called upon to provide air support for Canadian troops on the ground. Since Operation Archer began, 44 Canadian troops and one diplomat have been killed in Afghanistan; about 200 soldiers