"...we'll see within the next week or so..."

LGen Andrew Leslie made some interesting remarks last night at an open-air forum in Kandahar. Apart from revealing that Canada is chewing through the useful lifespan of its LAVIII fleet at a quicker rate than expected, and that the RG-31 breaks more often than planners had forseen without enough spare parts to go around, he speculated about Canada's Leopards:

But some of the worst problems described by the commander concerned the Leopard tanks sent to Afghanistan late last year. Canada has only 17 tanks on the battlefield, but they serve as a symbol of military power in districts where many people remain unsure about which side has more strength.

Lt.-Gen. Leslie said he hopes Stephen Harper will replace the old tanks, adding that he expects the Prime Minister's decision within about a week.

The Leopard tanks are 30 years old and are vulnerable to the increasingly powerful suicide bombs faced by Canadian troops, he said.

And with temperatures climbing every day he expressed concern about how the tanks will handle the 55-degree heat.

"They're on their last legs," he said.

Government researchers have been studying ways to prepare the tanks for summer, but the ideas -- such as outfitting soldiers with cold-water cooling vests, or installing air-conditioning -- would involve modifications to tanks the military had already planned to decommission four years ago.

"We're either going to replace them, or not," Lt.-Gen. Leslie said. "If we replace them, thank God. If the decision is 'No,' we'll suck it up, we'll come up with some workarounds, and we'll soldier on. Quite frankly, we'll see within the next week or so."

I think the comment about the Leos is the most interesting part of that whole report. We have the Chief of the Land Staff saying that there's a plan to replace Canada's main battle tank, and that that plan will be decided upon in the next week or so. Unless I'm mistaken, that's the first time anyone in a position of authority at DND has said that - in public, at least.

Watch and shoot.

Update: For those who wonder where the money would come from, I'd point out that the MGS purchase is being cancelled with only about $16M in incurred costs, which leaves the $600M-plus already allocated to a tank replacement free for another tank replacement. What can you buy on reasonably short notice for $600M?