Afstan: God bless the Toronto Star

If only Buffalo Bob Rae and most other Liberal leadership candidates knew as much and analyzed as well. And Darfur is not even mentioned.

In two recent leadership debates, Michael Ignatieff and Scott Brison came under fire from their rivals for voting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservatives to extend our role until 2009.

Ignatieff, in particular, has drawn fierce criticism. Bob Rae says Canadians don't need a "Harper lite" leading the official opposition. Joe Volpe claims Ignatieff embraces a "Made in Washington" foreign policy. And Lloyd Axworthy, a former Liberal foreign minister who is not in the race, says Ignatieff reflexively supports "American military adventures" instead of assuming a "responsibility to protect" civilians.

While Canadian opinion is split on the Afghan mission, these criticisms are simplistic. Liberal candidates who seek to differentiate themselves by proposing that Canada quit any active military role and instead volunteer only for lighter peacekeeping-style duties, or who fear we are "losing our way" or becoming an "occupying" force, do our country no service.

Three prime ministers now, Jean Chrétien, Paul Martin and Harper, have agreed that a stable Afghanistan is in our interest. Chrétien, no fan of foreign entanglements, did the right thing when our American neighbours were attacked on 9/11. He sent commandos [actually, mostly regular infantry: 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (3 PPCLI) Battle Group - MC] to help oust the terror-friendly Taliban. He also offered Afghans aid to restore democracy under President Hamid Karzai and to set up a new central government and rebuild. Later, Martin agreed Canada should play a lead role disrupting Taliban insurgents who pose a serious threat to the new government...

Canadians must remember that our 2,300 troops and $800 million in aid are in Afghanistan at Karzai's express request, under a United Nations mandate and with 37 countries, including our North Atlantic Treaty Organization partners. The legitimacy of this mission is beyond criticism. Ignatieff and Brison deserve credit, not censure, for their defence of it.

True, the mission has evolved over time. Canadian forces were initially [secondly - MC: even the Star ain't perfect, see two paras above] in relatively safe Kabul, the capital. They are now in dangerous Kandahar, part of the U.S.-led Enduring Freedom counterinsurgency campaign. They are fighting Taliban instead of doing an easier job under NATO in a calmer region. But NATO expects to take over even this mission soon...

Strange days.

The New York Review of Books has a pessimistic, but I think honest, article on Afstan that should be read.