Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, gentlemen, for being here today.
In listening to you, I feel I'm listening to myself. I agree with you that the merits of foreign engagement in Afghanistan have not been made very clear to the Canadian public, nor has the understanding of the reality on the ground been made clear even within our own caucuses.
My question today is on the Bonn accords. The disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration program, DDR, was slow to bear fruit. How do we sell the benefits and dividends of the ISAF's counter-narcotics policy and overall stabilization policy to former and current members of the Afghan militia forces, i.e., the descendants of the mujahedeen?
The second question is, what in your view is driving the current high level of Taliban and Hizbi Islami Gulbuddin, HIG, activity in the southern province?
The last question is, given the problems with phase three's fourth-generation processes, is there a real chance that we could find private military companies, PMCs, more active in Afghanistan in the future?