CF commander in Afstan: A "serious, desperate situation"

The audio (it's important to realize that the overall impression from the interview is a lot less sensational than the Reuters' story below suggests):

...

In an interview from Kandahar, he updated CBC radio host Anna Maria Tremonti of The Current on Canada's progress in the war-torn country, the successes Canadian soldiers have witnessed and the challenges they face.

To listen to the full interview, click here.

Still, the strongest words yet from a senior Canadian officer, I think (some other realism here); the Brigadier-General in charge of Joint Task Force Afghanistan (next Roto 8 is arriving now) speaks:

Afghanistan situation a 'major emergency,' says General Vance

Canadian Brig.-Gen. Jonathan Vance sits against a mud wall in the volatile Dand district of Afghanistan, June 10, 2009. "It’s a serious, desperate situation," says Gen. Vance.

Photo Credit: Craig Pearson/Canwest News Service,

Afghanistan is in a "serious, desperate situation" which constitutes a major emergency, Canada's top commander on the ground said in a frank interview broadcast Wednesday.

Brigadier-General Jonathan Vance made his remarks at the end of a 25-minute interview with the CBC, which looked at the tasks confronting Canada's 2,700 strong mission in southern Afghanistan...

...Gen. Vance said one of his greatest challenges was communicating to Canadians what the troops were doing in Afghanistan and why.

"It's not to sugar coat anything, and it's certainly not to make the mission seem better than it is. It's a serious, desperate situation. It's a major emergency," he said.

"But [I] ... try and put all of that into some sort of context such that people -- whether they believe we should be here or not -- at least they understand."...

Note, from Oct. 7:

...
Generally speaking, Vance said, the tour has been a good one in that Canadian troops have accomplished a lot.

The commander said he's proud that an integrated military-civilian effort is underway in the region and that related techniques and methodology has proven effective...

Next month, Vance will hand over command of Canadian Afghan operations to Brig.-Gen. Dan Menard, the former commander, 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group...

But his frustration in late September:

Hard words