National Defence committee  Again, it's very clear to me that in July we cease our operations, which means everything. It's not just the battle group, it's the PRT, it's the trainers. With respect to your second question or third component--What about the forces between July and December?--well, that's most probably the personnel part of the mission, the termination task force that General McQuillan talked about.

National Defence committee  Yes.

National Defence committee  I won't go through the whole list. This is more the expertise of DFAIT or CIDA. Whether it's small hospitals or schools, a significant number of buildings have been built. But it's not the buildings per se; it's the capability. I think we're missing the point here when we look at mortar and bricks.

National Defence committee  I'll give you the rough number of people. There are a couple of hundred in the headquarters in Kandahar. But quite frankly, we're not at that stage right now. The CDS gave direction in August and I gave initial direction in September. In fact, before Christmas I'll issue my warning order where we'll get into the details, and a lot of it will be talking with General McQuillan.

National Defence committee  To me, it is very clear. The operations in Kandahar province will come to an end in July 2011. All Canadian Forces will have left Afghanistan by the end of the year. When we talk of a military mission, we mean all of its components. That includes the battle group that conducts combat and stability operations.

National Defence committee  I can tell you that the directives my boss gave me in August are very clear. Much has been said about them. It is very clear to me that we will cease operations in Kandahar in July 2011, and all Canadian Forces will have left Afghanistan by year end.

National Defence committee  I will repeat this so that it is very, very clear. My mandate and what I am responsible for—in partnership with General McQuillan, who will be of great assistance with regard to the equipment—is to repatriate the men and women of the Canadian Forces, as well as all the equipment, by the end of 2011.

National Defence committee  On the governance and development side, I see really two things. One of them, to reiterate what the Chief of Defence Staff is saying, is basic services, of course. The other is increased economic activity. Many Canadians do not know that just in the last 12 months we've seen bazaars, markets--many bazaars opening up in Kandahar City.

National Defence committee  I'll make my comments on the issues of Afghan leadership. Right now we're mentoring the Afghans in security, governance, and other activities. Slowly but surely, we're seeing the Afghans taking the lead, in both security and governance. It will take time, but I am sure that before long we will see the Afghans taking the full lead in their country.

National Defence committee  Just to continue on with what the chief was saying, about a month ago, when I was in Afghanistan, I had a good chat with General McChrystal. It's no coincidence that there are three U.S. battalion task forces under Canadian command. What we've seen from the commander of Task Force Kandahar and the brigadier-general commanding the Canadian Forces is innovation, leadership, and especially perseverance.

National Defence committee  I have just three points on the village approach, which we also call stability operations. First of all, they only started about six months ago, in May, so we're really only in the first six months. Second, we're concentrating close to Kandahar City. Kandahar City is the vital ground in southern Afghanistan, the key component, of the counter-insurgency.

National Defence committee  We're just at the initial phase of our coordinated planning. Within a parliamentary motion of ceasing operations in Kandahar in July, the overarching element right now is relief in place, a seamless relief in place between Canadian Forces troops and allied troops of whatever nation.

National Defence committee  After the initial discussions with the ISAF commander, General McChrystal, most of the legwork will be done with Regional Command South, which is a divisional type of headquarters situated in Kandahar airfield, and that's where the coordination will be done in terms of having Canadian Forces troops replaced by ISAF troops.

National Defence committee  The not sure of the exact number. I'd say between 10 and 15.

National Defence committee  As the CDS explained, he gave me direction in August. It took me about a month. I issued an initial planning guide in September. There are two main activities—they're different but complementary. The first is to continue doing the operations, which is population-centric, protecting the population.