One casualty is too many. It's always been difficult when you have a reinforcement and more soldiers, sailors, and airmen and airwomen coming into the south, and you see the levels, the indicators, the metrics of violence going up, and the indicators are normally an attack against the ISAF forces--IEDs and so on. So that is a real challenge.
As one ambassador once told me on a visit to Kabul, when the allies hit the Normandy beaches violence went up in France. So the very fact that we are there with a significant presence, because there are so many more people there, there will be a lot more violence happening, no doubt.
At the same time, and by having some experience in other theatres, you get to a critical mass of soldiers, sailors, and airmen on the ground. You turn the tide. If we have the right kind of assessment, the right kind of strategy working, then we're able to deny the Taliban from moving into the region and we will see a reduction in violence in the area.
With regard to 2011, again, it's an issue of my direction to the commander of CEFCOM and to the commander of Operational Support Command saying that we will end our military mission, we will move our Canadian Forces from the combat mission in July 2011, and now it's General Lessard's responsibility to get on with a workable plan.
Marc.