Mr. Speaker, the Liberals began this mission and both the Conservatives and the Liberals have kept us there.
If over 500 Canadian reservists are headed to Kandahar next February, is this not an escalation? If it is not an escalation, then what is? The government's direction in Afghanistan seems clear. It wants to have a surge in forces, increasing combat and more firepower.
The question is, why is Canada going so far beyond what other NATO forces consider to be acceptable, despite what the minister said today?