Harper confirms Canada to leave 'trainers' in Afghanistan

Mark Kennedy, Postmedia News November 11, 2010 7:01 AM

SEOUL, South Korea — Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Thursday he is reluctantly deploying military trainers to Afghanistan for three years because he doesn't want the past "sacrifices" of Canadian soldiers to be in vain. After several days of reports that the Conservative government was considering assigning nearly 1,000 soldiers to Afghanistan after Canada ends its military combat mission next year, the prime minister confirmed the plan. At a news conference, Harper spoke frankly about what motivated the decision — which is a sharp reversal from the public statements he was making earlier this year about the future of the Canadian mission. "I do this with some reluctance but I think it is the best decision when one looks at the options." Harper said other NATO countries would like Canada to continue its combat mission in Afghanistan, where more than 150 Canadian soldiers have lost their lives. "I've been very clear that is not an option Canada will consider," said Harper. "And look, I'm not going to kid you, down deep my preference would be, would have been, to see the complete end to the military mission. But as we approach that date, the facts on the ground convince me that the Afghan military needs further training."

Harper added that once he realized the training was necessary, he felt it was required to protect the hard-fought victories of the Canadian military. "I don't want to risk the gains that Canadian soldiers have fought for and that they have sacrificed in such significant numbers for by pulling out too early if we can avoid that."The prime minister said he believes that a smaller mission that just involves training will present "minimal risks for Canada." At the same time, he said that will "truly ensure" that Afghan forces are able to assume responsibility for their security.