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http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080207/mackay_troops_080207/20080207?hub=TopStoriesFrance may send troops to southern Afghanistan
Updated Thu. Feb. 7 2008 8:49 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
Senior Canadian officials are headed to France to negotiate the details of a plan to augment Canadian troops with French soldiers in southern Afghanistan.
A contingent of government officials are heading to Paris to discuss whether French troops will be joining Canada in Afghanistan's dangerous southern region, sources in Ottawa told CTV News.
French Defence Minister Herve Morin said Thursday that France was considering sending an undetermined number of troops to join Canada in Kandahar.
Those troops were originally to be stationed in Kabul, but France was considering sending them south in order to meet demands Canada has made to its NATO allies for support in the dangerous area.
"I said we would help the Canadians," Morin said in French about a meeting with Defence Minister Peter MacKay in Vilnius, Lithuania.
He said French President Nicolas Sarkozy would announce any final decisions.
"This is not a surprise," Laurie Hawn, MacKay's parliamentary secretary told CTV's Mike Duffy Live. "We've been working behind the scenes and in front of the scenes for a long time and it appears that that's now bearing fruit."
The Prime Minister's Office would not confirm the report.
The Liberals said Canadians should be cynical about what appears to be a sudden influx of NATO troops. Liberal defence critic Denis Coderre suggested that the foreign troop additions were probably committed previously, but the Tories are using the news for optimum political advantage.
"I am not surprised (the Conservatives) are making those announcements because I think (the troops) were given already."
Meanwhile, MacKay was trying to convince his NATO counterparts to cough up the 1,000 additional troops recommended in the Manley report. He is taking part in bilateral meetings with other defence ministers in Vilnius, Lithuania.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said he wants to extend Canada's military commitment beyond the February 2009 deadline, but only if NATO countries contribute 1,000 extra troops -- the amount recommended in a recent report by John Manley.
While MacKay said he would prefer the 1,000 troops come from one country, he conceded on Thursday that the required troops may have to come from a patchwork of nations. Last year, when the Netherlands went looking for extra troops, it eventually had to settle for small numbers of troops from various countries.
Before the closed-door meetings began MacKay said he wouldn't mince words, telling reporters in Vilnius he would deliver the message that "Canada is in need of additional troop commitments in southern Afghanistan to augment troops we have there now."
CTV's Tom Kennedy, reporting from Vilnius, said such strong language is rare at such meetings.
"He was very blunt. He said this is not negotiable. And if Canada doesn't get this kind of commitment from NATO then it will walk out. What's interesting about this is it's very rare you see Canada at the centre of attention at meetings like this," Kennedy told CTV's Canada AM.
He said there was a lot of interest among other defence ministers as to what stance Canada would take on the issue.
"I think the Alliance realizes right now that the timing is critical. The threat from Canada is focusing the attention of the Alliance and something is going to have to be done," Kennedy said.
MacKay met with defence ministers from the U.K., Australia and Holland to sound out their positions.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is currently in Afghanistan, is also calling for additional troops to help in the volatile south.
The Liberals, who have been calling for an end to Canada's combat role in Afghanistan, said Harper has failed to realize the mission must change.
Liberal Leader Stephane Dion told the House of Commons that Harper wasn't being honest about his intentions in Afghanistan.
"He must be honest about his plan for a never-ending mission. He should also end the mismanagement and confusion," Dion said during question period on Thursday. "How can Canadians have any trust in this prime minister and his plan for a never-ending mission? The prime minister who controls everything, but runs nothing."
Harper, meanwhile, said NATO allies are aware of his government's intention to extend Canada's military mission, and that the time will come for all parties to decide their position.
"The choice is to do and, in fact, strengthen the military mission or to not do the military mission and abandon those commitments," Harper said. "On that fundamental question -- those two choices -- Canadians deserve the truth from every political party."
NATO Spokesperson James Appathurai, speaking from Vilnius, told Canada AM on Thursday that many Canadians are under a misconception that Canada, the U.S., U.K. and Holland are the only countries doing combat work in southern Afghanistan.
"I really wouldn't agree that only four countries are fighting," he said. "I think if you're Polish you wouldn't appreciate that. I think if you're Danish, Estonian, Romanian or Australian you wouldn't appreciate that because they're all fighting down in the south."
And France and Germany are among countries who have indicated they are willing to send troops to the south in an emergency situation, he said.
Appathurai said there are actually 11 countries involved in the south, and the total number of forces in the region has increased by 10,000 in the past year alone.
"Let's not give Canadians the impression there are only four countries fighting in the south. There are not," he said. "Can we get more support for the south? I think we all need to work for that. We want to see as NATO an alliance that has the minimum number of restrictions on where forces can be used."
On Wednesday, U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates told a Senate committee that international disagreements over Afghanistan threatened to make NATO a two-tier alliance, with some members risking lives on the front lines while others sit back.
With files from The Canadian Press
