GAP said:It actually is her responsibility, but given her former affiliations and such, everybody was of the mind that she was a virtual princess and not at all supportive. It's nice to see, even if a little late.
Polling on Afghanistan
Ret'd General Lewis Mackenzie was interviewed on Canada AM this morning and he made a great point when asked about the polls showing weak support for the Afghanistan mission.
You can watch the interview here.
He basically said that he'd like to see what the results of a poll would be if Canadians were asked whether or not they supported the Taliban returning to power in Afghanistan.
What do you think the results would be?
And further - what do you think the headlines in the paper would be? ONLY 5% OF CANADIANS SUPPORT NDP POSITION!
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=6eb9695b-cc74-416a-9b7f-401ed106d75b&k=73165Harper to defend Afghanistan mission in first United Nations speech
Beth Gorham, Canadian Press
Published: Tuesday, September 19, 2006
WASHINGTON (CP) - Prime Minister Stephen Harper will be promoting Canada as a key global player at his first United Nations speech Thursday, while trying to mollify critics at home who say the Afghanistan mission is exacting too high a price.
Observers also expect Harper to appeal for more help from the international community, especially top European allies, as he highlights Canada's contributions in the war-torn country and defends the switch from peacekeeping to active combat.
It's a delicate line for the Conservative leader, who has been accused of aligning his foreign policy, even some of his phrasing, too closely with President George W. Bush.
And the prime minister is under other pressures at home, especially after announcing a new contingent for the fight and the deaths Monday of four Canadian soldiers killed by a suicide bomber while they were handing out candy to kids.
New Democrats are calling on him to bring the troops home and the Bloc Quebecois is demanding an emergency parliamentary debate.
Harper can't afford, though, to appear to be wavering at the UN, said David Bercuson at the Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute in Calgary.
Harper may, however, talk about redeploying elsewhere in Afghanistan after the current mission ends in January 2009.
"He also needs to find a better way of selling it to Canadians than simply repeating the maxims of Washington," said Bercuson. "They're getting that message from the highest levels of the armed forces - that the case has to be presented much better and more widely."
And while it's true that Canada is losing soldiers partly because the United States diverted much of its attention from Afghanistan to Iraq before the Taliban was truly crushed, there are other factors, he said.
"Are we picking up their chestnuts for them? It's a yes and a no. They took a lot of their resources out of Afghanistan or just never sent them."
"But there's as much of an argument to be made that NATO should have gone in earlier," said Bercuson.
"The Americans and the Brits paid the price in the first years. We came along relatively late in the game and now we're taking the heat."
As Harper addresses the UN General Assembly, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay will be meeting with NATO colleagues at a Manhattan hotel to drum up more support for the mission.
...
Surveys suggest Canadians are split on the mission. A recent Strategic Counsel poll conducted just before the lastest casualties found 42 per cent support it, compared with 49 per cent opposed.
Support was up since August, including in Quebec. The highest level of suport for the conflict has been about 55 per cent.
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=d72bd09b-c980-4892-9433-8467524abfdc&k=4394Karzai hopes to convince Canadian politicians of need for Afghan mission
Alexander Panetta, Canadian Press
Published: Tuesday, September 19, 2006
OTTAWA (CP) - Afghanistan's president hopes to convince Canadian skeptics about the need for this country's continued involvement in Afghanistan during a speech to Parliament on Friday.
Hamid Karzai will not make specific references to the NDP, which has called for the withdrawal of Canadian troops from Afghanistan, nor will he target other MPs who personally oppose the mission.
He wants to avoid being dragged into domestic politics - but he does want Canadian politicians to hear his message, said Afghanistan's top envoy to Ottawa.
"He is going to explain the Afghan perspective and convey the wishes and hopes of the Afghan people," said Omar Samad, Afghanistan's ambassador to Ottawa. "And hopefully, maybe, somebody in the audience will realize that reality lies somewhere other than where they thought."
The speech to Parliament will be a highlight of Karzai's two-day trip beginning Friday.
He will also meet with the families of Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan, as well as Prime Minister Stephen Harper and interim Liberal Leader Bill Graham.
Karzai has no current plans to meet privately with NDP Leader Jack Layton, whose party massively endorsed a troop pullout during their recent convention.
Karzai is aware of the growing controversy over the mission, and he has expressed some surprise about the nature of the debate in Canada.
"He thinks there is probably excessive focus on the military aspect when Canada's role is more than just military," Samad said. Karzai will emphasize the humanitarian role Canada plays in his country and how it can continue to help in several areas, including human rights, governance and developmental work.
Karzai's visit comes on the heels of a suicide attack that killed four Canadian soldiers and brought Canada's death toll in Afghanistan to 37.
Armed with a bomb so powerful it killed a cow 70 metres away, an attacker plowed into a group of soldiers while they dispensed candy to local children.
The attack Monday signalled a Taliban shift back to guerilla tactics after scores were slaughtered in head-to-head warfare against Canadian-led NATO troops.
The NDP and several international observers have suggested that pro-Taliban insurgents should be consulted in peace negotiations.
NATO officials admitted that such high-stakes talks were already under way with some insurgent groups in the Panjwaii region last month.
However, a subsequent international assault on insurgents in the area appeared to have scuttled any negotiations.
Samad said ex-Taliban sympathizers have been welcomed with open arms into the new, democratic Afghanistan.
But he said that invitation does not include what he described as Taliban war criminals and foreign fighters who have entered the country.
"You won't see any negotiations taking place with Mullah Omar," he said.
"The door has been open for (Taliban supporters) all along, and thousands of them have given up on militancy and extremism. "I'm not talking about non-Afghans who are supportive of terrorism, violence and extremism."
cplcaldwell said:and it took what? Twenty minutes?
Karzai snubs Layton request for meeting
Sep. 21, 2006. 06:50 PM
ALEXANDER PANETTA
CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA — Afghan President Hamid Karzai arrived in Canada on Thursday to help drum up support for the mission in his troubled country, but a meeting with the country's most prominent anti-war politician did not appear to be on his agenda.
NDP Leader Jack Layton has made several requests for a meeting with the Afghan leader — and has had no reply.
Layton is the only major federal party leader to have called for a withdrawal of Canadian troops from Afghanistan.
He says he'd like to discuss alternatives to the current conflict with Karzai.
"I certainly would like to have the opportunity to speak with him," Layton said outside the House of Commons.
"We've certainly requested (a meeting), and would appreciate the opportunity."
Layton's staff has made repeated requests through the Department of Foreign Affairs and by appealing directly to the Afghan embassy in Ottawa.
When contacted Thursday afternoon, the embassy confirmed that no meeting with Layton had yet been scheduled.
Karzai was to meet Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Thursday evening. He is also to meet Liberal Leader Bill Graham, civil-society groups, soldiers' families, and even the mayor of Montreal over the next three days.
Karzai will address Parliament on Friday, when he is expected to make the case that Canada's continued efforts are a necessary boost to his war-ravaged nation.
But he also wants to drive home the message that Canada's role in Afghanistan carries a large humanitarian component — not just a military one.
Layton said the current reality suggests otherwise. He pointed to statistics indicating that Canadian military spending in Afghanistan is outstripping humanitarian spending by nine to one.
"This mission is completely out of whack," Layton said.
"By investing so heavily in the war effort in the south, it's depriving Afghanistan from the investments in humanitarian aid and in reconstruction that are required elsewhere in the country."