Posted on 07/07/2011 11:52:16 AM PDT by Pan_Yan
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Canada formally ended its combat role in Afghanistan on Thursday, closing a mission that has cost 157 soldiers their lives since 2002 — casualties that shocked Canadians unaccustomed to seeing their troops die in battle.
The move adds to the burden of U.S. and Afghan troops who are trying to prevent a Taliban rebound in the militants' southern stronghold where Canadian troops had been fighting in their bloodiest conflict since the Korean War.
Canada is withdrawing its combat units as the sixth largest troop-contributing nation, behind the U.S., Britain, Germany, France and Italy. Like Americans and Europeans, Canadians have grown weary of the war as it nears the 10-year mark.
While 2,850 Canadian soldiers are going home, 950 others have started streaming into Afghanistan to help train Afghan security forces to take the lead role in securing the country by 2014.
Canada passed the responsibility for two districts of Kandahar province to U.S. forces at Kandahar Air Field during a ceremony held in a hall decorated with Canadian maple leaf flags. After remarks, handshakes and the exchange of military paperwork, troops held a moment of silence for their fallen comrades.
Since 2002, 157 Canadian troops, one diplomat, one journalist and two aid workers have been killed in Afghanistan.
... the U.K. will withdraw 500 troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012, a move that will reduce the size of the British contingent to 9,000.
Other top troop-contributing nations are Germany with 4,800, France with 3,900 and Italy with 3,880.
French Defense Minister Gerard Longuet has said that about 1,000 French troops would be out by the summer of 2012.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle has said his country aims to start pulling out troops by the end of the year.
(Excerpt) Read more at google.com ...
Mmogamer served his time in the penalty box and apologized profusely. He manned up. Read post 7.
Canadians can go f*ck themselves. I show them no respect because all they show Americans is disrespect.
If you don’t like that then stuff it in your ahole.
If you’re using Wiki as a place to prove your point then you are dumb enough to be a canadian. Wiki has been discredited over and over again. Go back to canada. They need fools like you. They are a bunch of limp liberals. Screw all of you.
Another ignoramus proudly spews forth vomit and thinks he is making a point, all the while simply making himself a fool. Well done, sir.
Still upset that Canada voted in a Conservative leader and you have Obama? Suck it up buttercup.
Listen Canuk. I don’t forget the fact that the terrorists who attacked us on 9/11 came across the border from Canada. Thanks to your weak immigration laws you let in people who are a threat to you and others. It was because your lousy country that they got through into ours. Thanks to your PC rules it was your country that gave them a place to sneak into ours and kill 3000 Americans. With friends like Canada who needs enemies.
Canada is anti-gun, Anti-religion, anti-American. SO suck on it canucks.
A Canadian conservative is still a limp wristed liberal. So suck it up yourself.
“I don’t forget the fact that the terrorists who attacked us on 9/11 came across the border from Canada.”
Impossible as it may seem, you must be even stupider than you are rude.
Either way, FOAD.
I remember now - you’re the guy worried about getting his knees soiled in the washroom cubicles.
I suspect you are a DU troll.
Agreed. I worked with Canadians in Afghanistan. They were damned good.
And for all you smart-asses, Canada has a much smaller military, so even though their troop numbers were considerably smaller than ours, their OPTEMPO was just as punishing. They were not slacking in the least.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.