Fraser set to hand over NATO reins to Dutch
Updated Tue. Oct. 31 2006 4:46 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
Canadian Brig.-Gen. David Fraser, is set to hand over command of southern Afghanistan to the Dutch on Wednesday.
It's a rotational change-of-guard that will see Dutch Maj.-Gen. Ton Van Loon take over as NATO leader in the south and command six provinces for half a year. Fraser will also hand over authority of the Canadian contingent to Brig.-Gen. Tim Grant.
Fraser will be heading home to Edmonton, where he will join his wife Poppie, their two sons, and an Akita dog named Seiko.
"The Taliban were not successful this summer, or this fall, in the objectives they stated," Fraser told CTV News.
"They said this was going to be their summer -- they failed; they failed miserably. The operations in Panjwaii were a prime example of what they wanted to do, and they failed."
Fraser has commanded about 9,500 NATO forces -- mainly British, Canadian and Dutch troops -- in southern Afghanistan since July 31. The past few months have been marked by intense operations against insurgents, who have managed to kill more than a dozen Canadian troops.
"You're damn right they killed a lot of Canadians, and they killed a lot of other soldiers, and they killed even more Afghans. Because they have no respect for life," said Fraser.
"All they offer is hopelessness, and what the international community and Afghan government offer is hope."
Meanwhile, NATO and Afghan troops are pressing ahead with a new joint offensive called Operation Eagle.
The countrywide operation is aimed at striking a blow at the Taliban during the coming winter season.
The operation is also aimed at paving the way for long-promised development after the harshest fighting since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion that ousted the Taliban.
Fraser said Canada has taken a much more aggressive role in Afghanistan, but it was a necessary step towards any future reconstructive efforts.
"I see our history - our military history, our Canadian history - as an evolution. Is this peacekeeping? Yes. Is this peacemaking? Yes. Is this war, or fighting? Yes," said Fraser.
The 32,000-strong NATO-led force assumed command of security across the whole of Afghanistan last month when it took over from U.S.-led forces in the east of the country.
The transfer of power had been expected later in the year, but alliance officials said battles with resurgent guerrillas in the south showed the pressing need to consolidate the troops under NATO.
Fraser said that as long as the mission is approved by the Canadian people, troops will be in the war-torn country for as long as it takes to bring peace and stability.
"We're talking years. I can't say if it's five, 10 or 15. I don't know, I don't have a crystal ball, but it is measured in years," said Fraser. "We're not going to win this conflict this fall, or this summer. We're going to be here for several years to get this thing done."
Canada has about 2,300 soldiers in Afghanistan, with most of them stationed in the south.
Forty-two Canadian soldiers and one diplomat have died in Afghanistan since 2002.
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QUEBEC CITY -- An extra contingent of Canadian soliders is en route to Afghanistan.
Seventy-six troops left CFB Valcartier last night on a 22-hour flight to Kandahar.
Fifty will be on a nine-month assignment to guard reconstruction projects in the area, which has grown increasingly hazardous.
Since summer, Taliban insurgents have picked up the pace of suicide bombings and ambushes.
The rest of the fresh troops will join a Canadian contingent helping to train the Afghan national army.
The poorly equipped force needs foreign support to maintain security in the volatile country.
Another 100 soldiers from Valcartier leave for duty in Afghanistan at the end of November.
Canada has about 23-hundred soldiers in Afghanistan.
Forty-two have been killed since 2002.
Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor was on hand to see the latest troops off and said their mission in Afghanistan is a noble one.
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