An envoy would offer the opportunity to focus renewed diplomatic activity toward a broader peace process and focus, within the governmental system, a series of activities and support for civil society—which admittedly is weak in many places in Afghanistan, but does exist. We have worked with our colleagues through Peacebuild Canada, the pathways to peace program that has been supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. We're grateful for that support, but it is grudging and very small and hasn't been renewed as yet, so we have direct experience of the difficulty in getting momentum within the overall Canadian Forces and the whole-of-government mission to Afghanistan to look at that priority.
On November 17th, 2010. See this statement in context.