CASR

Canadian
American
Strategic
Review

CF  in  Southern  Afghanistan  –  Multinational  Brigade  –  March  2006 Canada takes Command  of  Multi - National  Forces in Southern Afghanistan to fight Taliban & Al Qaeda Chris Wattie  –  first  published  in  the  National  Post,  28  February  2006. Sura  espiyan  is  Pashtun  for  'Red  Dogs'. After two weeks of probing and testing  the Canadian soldiers who have been patrolling the territory  near Kandahar,  the insurgents have learned to beware the soldiers with the red  maple  leaf on  their shoulders.  Officers with the Canadian battle group say that the Taliban  have good reason to steer clear of the Canadians.  "They ought  to  be afraid," said  Major  Bill  Fletcher. "Our  presence is enough  to  make  insurgents  think  twice." Canada  takes  Command  of  Multi - National  Forces  in  Southern  Afghanistan The 'Red Dogs' label was meant as an insult  –  but it is also tinged with more than a little  respect.  Many of  the dogs around  Kandahar are  huge  Afghan  hounds, bred  for  fighting.   A  Canadian  general  took  over  command  of  Afghanistan's six  southern  provinces,  nearly  220,000  square  kilometres of  the  most  rugged and  dangerous  terrain  in  the  country. A joint brigade of  Canadian,  British and Dutch  troops will spread across the  southern  half of  Afghanistan,  home to the Taliban, their al-Qaeda allies,  gangs of  drug-runners, and  hundreds of  warlords. Brigadier-General David Fraser took command of the Multinational Brigade in a formal ceremony on  28 February 2006, but the 2,200 Canadian troops under his command  had  already  begun  patrolling deep  into their area of  responsibility. British soldiers are starting  to arrive in  Helmand  province,  a  centre of  poppy growing  and  the  opium  trade,  just  west  of  Kandahar.  In  the  early  spring of  2006,  a  Dutch  battalion  is  due  to  hit  the  ground  in  Uruzgan  province. Taliban  insurgents  start  testing  the  resolve  of  the  Canadian  Forces The CF have pushed into districts north of  Kandahar and have begun forcing the insurgents  back  into the mountains. The Taliban, in turn, have responded with roadside bombs and rocket-propelled grenade attacks. It  appears  that  the  Taliban  expected  the  CF  to  be softer  targets  than  the Americans. But Canada's new M777  long-range  howitzer  has  made  an  impression. NATO  to  take  over  command  of  Afghan  mission  from  the  United  States This summer,  the counter - insurgency  mission in  Afghanistan  will switch from being  part  of   'Operation  Enduring  Freedom'   [OEF]  –  under US command  –  to being  part  of  the  NATO-led  International Security Assistance Force [ISAF]. "We  are  keen  to  dispell  the  notion  that  the  Americans  are  leaving,  and  that what  is  replacing  them  will  be  weaker,"  said  the  British  chief  of  staff  for  the Multinational  Brigade,  Colonel  Chris  Vernon.  The  hand - off  of  authority  to NATO  is  not  "an  American  'cut - and - run'.  A  lot  of  the  combat  power  in the  area  is  still  US.  They're  still  a  big  part  of  this  coalition." Canadian  Forces  moving  into  the  frontlines Lieutenant - Colonel  Ian  Hope,  commander  of  the  950 - strong  Canadian battle group, code - named  'Task  Force  Orion',  has  divided  his  force into three parts. Two  companies  of  mechanized  infantry  will  patrol  the  areas  north  and  east of Kandahar. The third company will run the provincial reconstruction team [PRT] in the city, and act as a  quick-reaction force  that can be  rushed to trouble spots. Troops  for  his  frontline  companies  –  Alpha Company  and  Charlie Company  –  were  drawn  from  1st  Battalion  Princess  Patricia's  Light  Infantry  [1 PPCLI]. They  have  been  reinforced  with  personnel  from  the  Royal  Canadian  Horse Artillery,  military  police,  engineers,  civil - military  co-operation  cells  [CIMIC], and  other  support  units. That has swelled the ranks of the two line companies from about  100 soldiers to nearly 200,  creating two mini-battle groups to patrol the vast area for which the Canadians are responsible. Canadian  Forces  to  patrol  the  border  with  Pakistan In the coming weeks, the Canadians will expand their patrol area even more, sending Maj. Fletcher's soldiers east to the Afghan-Pakistan border, another hotbed of Taliban and warlord activity. "There's a whole ridgeline through the area that pretty much delineates the Afghan-Pakistan border and their lines of movement between their sanctuaries and wherever they're basing their operations in the rest of Afghanistan," he said. "We're going to be trying to interdict the enemy's movements ... we want to restrict their freedom to manoeuvre." The Canadians will establish forward operating bases in the centre of their patrol area, a permanent presence designed to convince residents that coalition troops are here to stay  –  and to intimidate the Taliban. "By our presence we'll be disrupting their movements ... and instilling confidence in the local leaders that the bad guys can't come in and coerce the population," Maj. Fletcher said. Col. Vernon said the long-term goal is "marginalizing the Taliban," forcing them out of regions where they once operated openly and pushing them further away from populated areas.  "That will hearten the local population." [Ed:  Since  this article  was  first  published,  there have been  three  CF  deaths in Kandahar.  It is  crucial  that  we continue to support our  Forces  in Afghanistan.]