The basic challenge for NATO defence ministers and chiefs of defence staff is that helping to rebuild a society like Afghanistan is a great challenge.
We've said a number of times that we're trying to help rebuild a country from a governing point of view, trying to make the lives of people better, and trying to offer security. The great challenge is always an issue at NATO. I may have it wrong, but I believe the population of Afghanistan is estimated to be somewhere around 26 million or 27 million people. We have a GNP of 119 or 120 times theirs, and we have about the same population--we have 33 million people--so you can see how far back they are. It's a great challenge for NATO, but none of the ministers ever question whether, ultimately, we're going to succeed. There's general confidence that we can do it, because we are among the richest countries in the world.
As to the timeline, there are timelines out there. The Canadian timeline at the moment is the end of February 2009, but there are timelines based on agreements in London and agreements in Germany. In 2010 there are certain things to be achieved, and in 2011, etc. There are times out there.
Although you may hear people on the news and different people with an interest in Afghanistan comment that this problem will go on for a long time, there is no set time in NATO. NATO isn't saying we're going to be there until 2012 or 2015 or whatever. NATO, at the moment, is committed to try to achieve the conditions that I mentioned earlier in my speech: we're trying to create a level of governance that would allow the central government and the provincial governments to deliver services to their people; we're trying to get roads and bridges and schools, etc., rebuilt so that society can operate again; and we're trying to suppress the insurgency to a level at which it doesn't interfere with the day-to-day lives of most people. That's what NATO is trying to do.