Afstan: Canadian officers take command at Kandahar and of Regional Command (South)

A fact to which the Canadian government prefers not to have attention drawn. Our forces in Afstan will be under overall command of Americans, Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry and Maj.Gen. Benjamin C. Freakely (10th Mountain Division), until this summer.

On Feb. 24 Lieutenant-Colonel Ian Hope, Commanding Officer of Task Force ORION--the Canadian battle group in Operation ARCHER-- took command of operations in Kandahar province under overall command of US Operation Enduring Freedom.

Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Battle Group officially took over control of operations in Kandahar province February 24, 2006 at a ceremony at Kandahar Airfield.

The American soldiers they replaced are returning home after a year of operating in this volatile region. After weeks of handing over duties and passing on knowledge, both American and Canadian soldiers say they are confident the Patricias will further the allied goal of helping Afghans turn the province into a stable, secure environment effectively governed by Afghans.

Soldiers from the battle group... started deploying to Kandahar in mid-January. After a couple of weeks of familiarizing themselves with the environment and preparing their equipment and vehicles, they started accompanying American soldiers on patrols throughout Kandahar province.

Canadian Military Police (MP) talk with their United States counterparts before departing for a joint patrol. The Canadian MPs ride with the Americans to watch and learn how the Americans have been conducting patrols. Photo by: Master Corporal Ken Fenner

At first, the Canadians occupied the right seat on the patrols, following the Americans' lead and learning as much as they could from the Americans' experience. Afterwards, they took the left seat and led the patrols with the Americans riding shotgun and offering tips and advice.

On Feb. 28 Brig.-Gen. David Fraser took command of

Regional Command (RC) South today in Kandahar, succeeding US Army Col. Kevin Owens. As commander of the multinational brigade led by Canada, Brig.-Gen. Fraser will be responsible for Canadian and coalition operations [including US troops] in Southern Afghanistan until November 2006...

RC South is also still under Enduring Freedom. It covers

...six provinces in the southern part of Afghanistan, which spreads over some 220,000 square kilometres.

Brig.-Gen. Fraser has

125 CF members with the Multi-National Brigade Headquarters (MNBHQ) in Kandahar. In total in the headquarters, there are 250 personnel from Australia, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Romania, Netherlands, United Kingdom, and United States of America stationed with MNBHQ...

So far the multinational brigade does not have its UK and Dutch units and appears to be an HQ without an actual brigade. There is however a Romanian battalion of 405 soldiers in addition to the Canadian battle group.

Later this year, a British Battle Group in Helmand province and a Dutch unit in Uruzgan province will join the Canadians. These allied forces will be led by Brigadier-General David Fraser's Canadian-led Multi-National Brigade Headquarters that will take control later this spring.

These UK and Dutch units are not there now, contrary to what Canadian media reports may suggest.

The UK is however beginning to deploy troops into Helmand province, immediately west of Kandahar. I am unclear whether these forces are currently under the multinational brigade HQ.

150 Royal Marines Commandos left Britain on 14 February 2006, headed for Helmand, Afghanistan where they will provide support and protection for the UK personnel who are building a base...The Marines form part of an 850-strong advance party deploying to Afghanistan this month which will also include engineers from 39 Regiment, Royal Engineers and three CH-47 Chinook helicopters. The Marines will carry out the vital function of protecting Army and RAF personnel as they build the infrastructure critical for the follow-on deployment of 16 Air Assault Brigade in the summer.

And at some point this summer the multinational brigade will shift from Enduring Freedom to command of NATO ISAF; ISAF HQ in Kabul will be under British General Richards from May 2006 (there is a good account at this link of UK plans for Afstan by Secretary of State for Defence John Reid).

Complicated? You bet.