Afghanistan: Canada's 'Mission Impossible?'

As more and more bodies of our soldiers are returned from the battlefields, Canadians are about evenly divided when asked whether our mission in Afghanistan should be abandoned.

There's little doubt as to where some of our politicians stand on the issue. In particular, Prime Minister Stephen Harper stands committed to maintaining the mission until at least February, 2009, while NDP Leader Jack Layton wants the troops out by next February.

In all likelihood, the issue will dominate question periods in the House of Commons when it reconvenes, and there seems little doubt that it will figure prominently in the Liberal leadership race, where frontrunner Michael Ignatieff says we should be staying the course while others, including Bob Rae, advocate more emphasis being placed on economic aid and less on military offensives.

There's certainly no doubt that the role Canada has been playing has changed in recent months. Initially, our troops were posted near the capital, Kabul, where most of the time was spent in an ordinary policing role, maintaining law and order and the main risk was from suicide bombers.

Now based in the Taliban-dominated Kandahar region in southwest Afghanistan, the soldiers are instead engaged in open warfare against an enemy that seems to blend in with the local populace where they apparently enjoy widespread support.

It would seem there's little doubt that Canada's reputation as an independent country whose soldiers specialize in peacekeeping is already suffering and may be damaged beyond repair.

In the circumstances, it will be interesting, indeed, to see whether the federal government will stick to the present course or try to create at least the impression of a change in course. There's little doubt that unless the current

offensive, dubbed Operation Medusa, succeeds in routing the Taliban, Afghanistan will be the major roadblock Mr. Harper will face in his bid to set the stage for an election that would give the Conservatives a majority of Commons seats.

As matters stand, opposition to the Afghan mission is strongest in Quebec, and this is one area where the Bloc Québecois and NDP are in full agreement. Were an election to be called this fall, the Conservatives would be hard-pressed to hold on to the 10 Quebec seats they now have, let alone gain enough seats in Quebec and Ontario to form a majority.

One of the many problems the government faces is the lack of awareness of what the Afghan people really think about what's going on. We've certainly not seen any opinion polls or other evidence that would support a view that our troops are regarded any differently than U.S. troops in Iraq, where they are viewed with great suspicion and distrust.

Perhaps what's really needed is a combination of massive humanitarian aid and a "propaganda war" aimed at dramatically improving our image.

It would also help if we were to see a lot more presence of Afghan soldiers in the front lines of any future offensives. Although they might already be there, we've seen precious little reference to their roles, media reports typically mentioning that the Canadians were accompanied by "British, Dutch and Afghan forces."

Although Jack Layton's call for negotiations with the Taliban has been the subject of universal derision, it was interesting to see reports of talks between Taliban leaders and Afghan warlords, and we suspect that, as is usually the case, the Taliban has a political wing that might one day be interested in power sharing arrangements.

Where is Solomon when we need him?