Lieutenant-General Stuart Beare CMM, MSM, CD
Commander Canadian Expeditionary Force Command
This season marks our 10th Christmas with men and women of the Canadian Forces serving in Afghanistan. They are joined by some 350 other Canadians in uniform serving Canada and Canadians in 15 other missions around the globe. As we approach the holiday season at home, I would like to ask that we keep these fellow Canadians in our thoughts and prayers, reflect on the privileges we enjoy as a result of their service, and remember the thousands of others like them who serve and who have served to protect us at home and abroad.
On 1 December at Kandahar Airfield I had the privilege of attending the Canadian flag-lowering ceremony that formally symbolized the end of the Canadian mission in southern Afghanistan. At sunset that day, almost 10 years to the day that the first Canadian soldier (from our Special Forces) arrived in Afghanistan, our Maple Leaf was lowered in Kandahar for the last time. The ceremony was fitting for the occasion, a dignified expression of our accomplishments and sacrifices in the war-torn province. It also marked our full transition to the ongoing efforts in Afghanistan - growing, training, and building the capacity of the Afghan National Security Forces at large – centred largely in Kabul.
There are many reasons why Kandahar will remain significant to Canada, from the tens of thousands of Canadian Forces personnel who have served there, to the units and home towns that provided the troops, and to the families that supported them. Never have we been engaged in such a long hard-fought combat and capacity building effort. Our troops and their service, partnership, and sacrifices bought the “time and space” required so that Afghan army and Afghan police forces could grow to take on this responsibility.
This demanded fighting an elusive and determined enemy, a task that is today being increasingly and successfully conducted by Afghan soldiers and Afghan police forces themselves. Indeed, as our troops withdrew from their former area of operations in Kandahar, they left in place a very effective Afghan National Army Brigade - a brigade that, under four years of Canadian mentorship, was considered one of the most capable Afghan National Army formations in the country. Canadian Forces and our partners – including Afghans – bought that time and space. Security is reaching into corners of Kandahar in ways that could not have been hoped for just a couple of years ago.
While it was lowered in Kandahar, our Canadian flag flies high in Kabul - in over 15 training locations around that city and in training centres in the west and the north. Some 925 Canadians are working with partners from 37 nations to build Afghan institutions and train Afghan police, soldiers, airmen, and special forces as part of the NATO Training Mission – Afghanistan (NTM-A). This mission’s Deputy Commanding General is Canadian Major-General Mike Day. He and these Canadians represent the second largest contingent in NTM-A. Their combined efforts with NTM-A and Afghan partners are driving incredible growth, capability and capacity in Afghan security forces that are having a positive effect. In addition, they are contributing to sustained progress across Afghanistan.
Since NTM-A stood up in 2009; the Afghan National Army has grown from 97,000 to over 176,000 – and the Afghan National Police from 95,000 to over 140,000. This army and police force will continue to grow to a combined strength of 352,000 by this time next year. This growth in quantity has been matched by a growth in quality, leadership and institutional capacity of Afghanistan’s security forces. Most importantly, these security forces are incrementally replacing coalition forces, taking the lead and providing security for their fellow citizens. We are today at the heart of a mission that is allowing Afghans to ultimately provide for their own security. This holiday season will continue to see deployed Canadian Forces personnel working to make this happen.
The Canadian Forces have an incredible range of operational experience. We are sustaining an impressively diverse footprint of missions from Afghanistan to Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Caribbean. In each and every one of these missions, we are uniformly committed to the idea of creating capacity, investing in others, setting conditions for our successors, and ultimately leaving things better than when we arrived.
Close to 1,300 Canadian military families are spending Christmas without a loved one at the dinner table. Thank you for keeping those who serve, and those who support them, in your thoughts and prayers this holiday season.
Please show support and y our prayers for our Troops and their families.
FLASH !!! Breaking NEWS for the Kids;
Santa's escort pilots are ready to go
With Christmas rapidly approaching, the Canadian NORAD Region has finalized plans to track and escort Santa Claus during his visits to Canada with the selection of four CF-18 fighter pilots who will act as Santa's official escorts.
First to welcome Santa will be pilots Captains Gregory Myers and Aaron Dhillon of 425 Tactical Fighter Squadron who will launch from 3 Wing Bagotville, Que., as the sleigh approaches Canadian airspace. Taking over escort duties as Santa makes his way into western Canada will be the commanding officer of 410 Tactical Fighter Squadron, Lieutenant-Colonel Christopher Hamilton; his wingman for this mission will be Captain Corey Mask of 4 Wing Cold Lake, Alta.
http://www.rcaf-arc.forces.gc.ca/v2/nr-sp/index-eng.asp?id=12503
Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noel, С Рождеством. ¡Feliz Navidad, З Різдвом,
Nadolig Llawen, عيد ميلاد مجيد
Nil Sine Labore
Robby
