Canada has steadily increased its involvement in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban regime in the fall of 2001.
In July 2006, Canada began a major role in the southern part of the country, with a battle group of more than 2,000 soldiers called Operation Athena, based around Kandahar. For six months ending Nov. 1, 2006, Canada also held the command of one of the main military forces in the area, called Multi National Brigade for Command South.
There is more to Canada's commitment in southern Afghanistan. It is what Foreign Affairs calls "a whole of government approach." While the mission is largely military, the "Provincial Reconstruction Team" (PRT) also has personnel from Foreign Affairs, the Canadian International Development Agency and the RCMP. The PRT has a double aim, providing military security while at the same time working with local leaders in reconstruction efforts.
Canada had provided some limited humanitarian aid, usually about $10 million a year, to Afghanistan even prior to 2001. Canada re-established formal diplomatic relations with the new Afghan government on Jan. 25, 2002, and reopened the embassy in Kabul in September 2003.
At a conference on Afghanistan in Tokyo in January 2002, Canada made a major commitment to assist in the reconstruction of the war-torn country. Foreign Affairs says Afghanistan is now "the single largest recipient of Canadian bilateral aid." So far, according to Foreign Affairs, Canada has allocated a total of $616.5 million to Afghanistan, covering 2001 to 2009.
Canada's military mission to Afghanistan began soon after the attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. A naval task force was deployed to the Persian Gulf in October of that year.
In February 2002, a battle group from the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry was sent to Kandahar for six months and assisted the United States and other forces in Operation Enduring Freedom in their offensive against elements of the Taliban and al-Qaeda in the rugged southern regions.
From August 2003 to December 2005, Canada's military commitment was largely Operation Athena, based in the capital, Kabul, as part of the International Assistance Force, which had the aim of providing intelligence and security to allow "rebuilding the democratic process," something which eventually saw elections in the fall of 2005.
On July 31, 2006, NATO troops assumed command of all military operations in southern Afghanistan. The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) already had troops elsewhere in Afghanistan, including the capital Kabul, and in the north and the west of the country.
Lt.-Gen. David Richards, a British general, was put in charge of the NATO forces in southern Afghanistan. He announced the deployment of 8,000 NATO soldiers - including 2,200 Canadians - and Afghan units to six southern provinces by mid-September 2006. That deployment was increased to 2,500 in early September.
Other Canadian missions in Afghanistan included:
Heavy weapons cantonment: Helping the Afghan government collect, store and decommission 10,000 heavy weapons left over from decades of war, including artillery, tanks and rocket launchers.
Demining: Foreign Affairs says Canada has helped clear about one third of the estimated 10 million to 15 million mines in Afghanistan.
Microloans: Money from Canada has been used to provide microloans to more than 140,000 people in Afghanistan, 89 per cent of the clients are women.
Training: Canada also has a role in training the Afghan police and army. A group of Canadian Forces instructors were in Kabul to train members of the Afghan National Army. That unit remained in Kabul while the rest of the Canadian contingent moved south to Kandahar. Canadian troops are also training Afghan soldiers in Kandahar and the RCMP has a commitment to train Afghan police officers.
The Department of National Defence has also admitted that Canada's secret special forces, Joint Task Force Two, has been operating alongside the American and other special forces units in Afghanistan but no details have ever been released.
In May 2006, members of Parliament voted to keep Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan for two years longer than previously planned, amid rumours that Canada could take over leadership of the NATO mission there in 2008.
A NASA/MODIS satellite image of the rugged country in southern Afghanistan where Canadian troops are operating.
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People and Places
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- Soldier's diary: Sgt. Russell Storring
- Soldier's diary: Cpl. Brian D. Sanders
Issues
- Afghanistan: Heroin producer to the world
- Improvised Explosive Device
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- Afghanistan: Still no peace
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RELATED
External Links
- Rebuilding Afghanistan - Government of Canada
- Operation Athena
- NATO in Afghanistan
- CIA World Factbook, Afghanistan
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Quick Facts
Capital: Kabul
Area: 647,500 km sq. (same size as Manitoba)
Population: 28,513,000 (2004)
Head of State: Hamid Karzai
Unemployment: 78%
GDP (2003): $20 billion US (est.)
Exports to Canada (2003): $618,889
Imports from Canada (2003): $9 million
Median Age: 17.5
Life expectancy at birth: 42.46
Ethnic groups: Pashtun 42%, Tajik 27%, Hazara 9%, Uzbek 9%, Aimak 4%, Turkmen 3%, Baloch 2%, other 4%
(Source: CIA World Fact Book, Government of Canada)
