I don't think we should leave, but I would be irresponsible if I sat here and said there is no choice. There's always a choice. The situation in Afghanistan, as in any region of the world, could actually deteriorate to the point where I'd be sitting here saying we have to get out. What's the old adage, “Better to fight and run away and live to fight another day”? There's an element of that.
With no doubt, I am of the view that if we don't win this battle or win a large part of the war against terrorism here, it will be much tougher when we have to fight it somewhere else. So we should stay. That doesn't mean you couldn't leave if the circumstances warranted it, but if we leave, it's a clear sign to the insurgents, given what I've said about what Canada's contribution is and where it stands in that region, that they're winning. It gives them a big boost and gives the western world, our allies, a real kick in the pants in terms of what it does to the collective commitment. Canada has had a credibility problem in terms of its military commitments for some considerable time. It's earning a lot of that back, but you might see a lot of that lost very quickly.
To be frank, the impact on the morale, the mood of the Canadian Forces, would not be positive. Soldiers don't like going and doing tough jobs just to leave before the job is done. They particularly don't like having their buddies left on the battlefield and not win the day, not complete the mission. It would be hard on them. But all of that could happen if the circumstances warranted it. It's a tough call.