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**chootsonege** · 05-07-2011, 10:01 PM

CTV.ca News Staff

Date: Tue. Jul. 5 2011 5:50 PM ET

Kandahar, Afghanistan -- Canada's front-line fighting role in Afghanistan officially ended Tuesday when soldiers of the Royal 22e Regiment handed battlefield combat responsibilities over to the Americans.

Almost all Canadian troops are out of Kandahar's dangerous combat zones, except for a few soldiers who are attached to American platoons for a few more weeks.

Canada's war in Afghanistan is now effectively over after five years of fighting throughout farmland and dusty villages in one of the country's most dangerous areas. It cost Canada the lives of 157 soldiers, one diplomat and one journalist, not to mention the many soldiers left with life-altering injuries.

Canadians transfer Kandahar battle command to Americans - CTV News

The end of Canada’s five year long role has been barely mentioned in the media; the royal visit of William and Katherine leads most Canadian news media. But it is a significant event as the fighting in the Kandahar region, among the fiercest in the country’s civil war, now gets transferred to the Americans, one of, if not the last country to maintain a combat role.

It also appears to be another sticky point in Canada-US relations. Previous accounts following the election of president Barak Obama suggested then that Washington put significant pressure on Ottawa not only to extend its Afghanistan commitment, but to expand it. The war, though, has become increasingly controversial in Canada.

Canada, traditionally a left-of-center country has a Conservative government and there have been growing signs that there has been a further thawing of relations between Ottawa and Washington. After winning a majority government May 2, 2011, Prime Minister Stephen Harper served notice that Canada would begin asserting itself on the world stage. In fact it was he that put the kibosh on Obama’s 1967 Israel’s boundaries proposal at the recent G20 summit.

05-07-2011, 10:01 PM	#1
chootsonege Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 404 Senior Member	Canada Pulls Out of Afghanistan CTV.ca News Staff Date: Tue. Jul. 5 2011 5:50 PM ET Kandahar, Afghanistan -- Canada's front-line fighting role in Afghanistan officially ended Tuesday when soldiers of the Royal 22e Regiment handed battlefield combat responsibilities over to the Americans. Almost all Canadian troops are out of Kandahar's dangerous combat zones, except for a few soldiers who are attached to American platoons for a few more weeks. Canada's war in Afghanistan is now effectively over after five years of fighting throughout farmland and dusty villages in one of the country's most dangerous areas. It cost Canada the lives of 157 soldiers, one diplomat and one journalist, not to mention the many soldiers left with life-altering injuries. Canadians transfer Kandahar battle command to Americans - CTV News The end of Canada’s five year long role has been barely mentioned in the media; the royal visit of William and Katherine leads most Canadian news media. But it is a significant event as the fighting in the Kandahar region, among the fiercest in the country’s civil war, now gets transferred to the Americans, one of, if not the last country to maintain a combat role. It also appears to be another sticky point in Canada-US relations. Previous accounts following the election of president Barak Obama suggested then that Washington put significant pressure on Ottawa not only to extend its Afghanistan commitment, but to expand it. The war, though, has become increasingly controversial in Canada. Canada, traditionally a left-of-center country has a Conservative government and there have been growing signs that there has been a further thawing of relations between Ottawa and Washington. After winning a majority government May 2, 2011, Prime Minister Stephen Harper served notice that Canada would begin asserting itself on the world stage. In fact it was he that put the kibosh on Obama’s 1967 Israel’s boundaries proposal at the recent G20 summit.
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