By The Daily News on March 3rd, 2009.


Prime Minister Stephen Harper's candid statement that the Taliban cannot be defeated -- and that responsibility for the war must instead be given to Afghans -- was endorsed on Monday by John Manley, who chaired an authoritative 2008 investigation into Canada's mission in Afghanistan. But others are asking why the Canadian government has taken so long to admit that NATO's military efforts are not working.

"Why has it taken so many years for politicians to start talking honestly about the reality in Afghanistan?" asked Jorrit Kamminga, an official with the International Council on Security and Development, a London-based think-tank with years of experience in Afghanistan. "Why is Harper only finding out about this now, after all those sacrifices of so many Canadian soldiers? Have all their sacrifices been in vain?"

Manley's Independent Panel on Canada's Future Role in Afghanistan called on Ottawa 15 months ago for honest talk about the mission. In an CNN interview televised on Sunday, Harper did exactly that.

Source Link:
http://www.canada.com/Harper%20says%20Taliban%20cannot%20ever%20defeated/1347807/story.html



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