MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 19 Aug 11

• Report leaked to QMI:  CF way too top heavy.  “The Department of Defence and the Canadian Forces are top heavy with too many civilian bosses in Ottawa and need to shift resources to the front lines, according to a secret defence report. Between 2004 and 2010, civilian hires at DND and the CF outpaced hires in the regular forces three to one, and while the number of sailors fell, staff at DND/CF headquarters in Ottawa ballooned by 38%. But the government says those hires were necessary to backfill positions left vacant by Canada’s heavy involvement in Afghanistan, “so that military members could focus their efforts on operational matters,” wrote Jay Paxton, a spokesman for Defence Minister Peter MacKay, in an e-mail Thursday. The transformation report, authored by Gen. Andrew Leslie, was submitted in early July but has yet to be released publicly. QMI Agency obtained a copy from a military source ….”  No word on sharing the report with anyone who wants to read it themselves.
• Report leaked to Globe & Mail:  CF way too top heavy.  “National Defence must take an axe to its bloated headquarters by dismissing or reassigning thousands of workers if the military is to meet its future obligations, concludes a landmark report charged with transforming the Canadian Forces. This scathing assessment by Lieutenant-General Andrew Leslie, who commanded the Canadian army during the Afghanistan war, arrives at a pivotal moment for the military, as the army returns from its troubled mission in Kandahar, the navy and air force seek new ships and aircraft, and the Conservative government vows to eliminate the federal deficit in a gloomy economy. “If we are serious about the future – and we must be – the impact of reallocating thousands of people and billions of dollars from what they are doing now to what we want them to do …will require some dramatic changes,” Gen. Leslie writes in Report on Transformation 2011. A copy of the report has been obtained by The Globe and Mail ….”  No word on sharing the report with anyone who wants to read it themselves.
• Libya Mission (1)  More on HMCS Vancouver replacing HMCS Charlottetown from the CF Info-Machine.
• Libya Mission (2)  More on Canadian boss reorg in Italy (via CF Info-Machine)
• Way Up North (1)  “Peter Mackay, Canada’s defence minister, who arrived in Resolute Bay in the early hours of Aug. 18, made the most of his day-long visit to observe Operation Nanook, the Canadian Forces’ military exercise, shoring up support from every direction for his department’s increased visibility in Nunavut and the North. Mackay even managed to cram in a dive from an iceberg lodged in the bay outside Resolute with divers who have been learning how to work around icebergs. That, said Mackay, who donned a dry suit and full divers gear, was “disorienting,” but “incredible” as light shone through the iceberg into the water ….”
• Way Up North (2)  CF Info-Machine coverage of Operation Nanook:  “Operation Nanook is well underway with Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) aircraft and personnel providing valuable airlift during this major national and international operation. A combined Naval Task Group set sail from St. John’s, N.L. on Aug. 5, towards Canada’s Eastern and High Arctic, where other personnel and equipment from the Canadian Army, RCAF, and Canadian Rangers converged for the month-long, annual Arctic sovereignty exercise. In addition to the Canadian Forces, simulated major air disaster and maritime emergency scenarios involve the Canadian Coast Guard, Transportation Safety Board, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Public Safety Canada as well as the Government of Nunavut, the community of Resolute Bay and our private sector partners. Op Nanook, named for the Inuit word for polar bear, is the centerpiece of three annual northern sovereignty operations conducted by the Canadian Forces and its partners who share interest in Canada’s North ….”  More on Op NANOOK at the Canada Command page here.
  
• Way Up North (3)  “A senior Canadian Army officer – Lt.-Gen. Walter Semianiw – is to travel to Moscow and other northern European capitals this fall for discussions about the Arctic. This development mocks the ludicrous media hype suggesting that there is a bitter rivalry involving Canada, Russia, the United States and Denmark (Greenland) over their sometimes competing claims and interests in the Arctic. To be sure, there are differences of opinion about the top of the world. But the reality is there is actually far more co-operation than there is friction. “This is beyond search and rescue,” the chief of Canada Command told me in a recent interview upon his European travel plans. “We are going to be talking about military co-operation in the North.” Officials from Russia and other Arctic Council countries will “table top” an international search-andrescue exercise in the Yukon in October. At this moment, Canadian and Danish warships and U.S. Coast Guard and Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers are working together in Arctic waters after some of the vessels paid a courtesy call on a Greenlandic port. U.S. Coast Guard divers are on an exercise with Canadians on Cornwallis Island ….”
• Afghanistan (1)  Canada’s air contingent in Afghanistan basically shuts down, after a very busy few years – these stats from the CF on how busy the planes and crews were since December 2008:   More from QMI’s David Akin here, and ipolitics.ca here.
• Afghanistan (2)  How Canadian air force folks are helping create an Afghan air force (via CF Info-Machine).  “Kabul International Airport covers a vast area on the north side of the city. The sprawling complex includes civilian and military air terminals, air cargo centres, and International Security Assistance Force facilities. One military unit located on the airport grounds represents the future of the Afghan Air Force. The Afghan Air Training School (or Pohantoon e Hawayee, which means Big Air School) is where new members of the Afghan Air Force learn the basics of flying and maintaining aircraft and running an air unit. They also participate in literacy training, which is incorporated into nearly every course conducted by the Afghan national security forces. Ten advisors from Canada’s Air Force serve at the training school as part of the Canadian Forces contribution to the NATO training mission in Afghanistan. The Canadian staff are part of 738 Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron (738 AEAS), a NATO unit assigned to advise the the (school’s) Afghan commander and his senior staff ….”
• “The sacrifices made by members of the Canadian military and their families are being honoured with 26 bronze commemorative plaques that will be placed at intervals along the Highway of Heroes, which runs from Trenton, Ont., to Toronto. Announcement of the plaques took place Thursday in Toronto and was observed by at least 100 people, including Canadian soldiers, their families, parliamentarians and corporate sponsors. Each plaque is sponsored by a company, whose logo is visible below the image depicted on the plaque. Money raised through the sponsorship goes toward helping military families send children to summer camps, provide psychological counseling, retrofit homes and vehicles for soldiers returning with injuries or amputations and rehabilitate soldiers through athletics. Creation of the plaque program is a joint effort between the provincial Ministry of Transportation and True Patriot Love, a national foundation created by civilians with the aim of fostering better understanding between Canadians, the military and its endeavours ….”
• F-35 Tug o’ War  Well, at least SOME of the U.S. Joint Strike Fighters are able to fly again.  “The F-35 Lightning II test fleet has been cleared for flight, the Pentagon announced Thursday. An Air Force safety investigation board is continuing its investigation of the failure of the AF-4’s Integrated Power Package on Aug. 2, which led to the grounding of the entire fleet of 20 aircraft. The AF-4 is the fourth conventional takeoff and landing variant produced by Lockheed Martin. A government and contractor engineering team determined that flight operations of the test aircraft could continue after reviewing data from ground and flight tests, and revised the test monitoring procedures that govern the IPP. Ground operations of the test fleet resumed Aug. 10 ….”
• What’s Canada Buying?  Here’s a taste of what happened at the Fixed Wing Search and Rescue industry day:  “…. A full complement of the right ADM’s and DG’s from Industry, Public Works and DND turned out, and it was noteworthy that they stayed until the end of the day.  In a procurement with this kind of history, little things can mean a lot, so government representatives handed out all their slide decks and notes in advance …. industry has until September 16 to get back to the government with its feedback, with a major focus on where the fixed-wing purchase can and should sit on a spectrum from full government ownership and ISS all the way through to full ASD, provided it still delivers the same ‘world-class’ capability as today.  This does not appear to be the only interaction the Crown intends, as this briefing is being followed by individual one on one corporate briefings, with the promise of follow-up sessions once inputs have been received and digested ….”
• What’s Canada (Not) Buying?  Canada reportedly pulling out of Global Hawk UAV project.  “…. Canada has become the second country to withdraw from the Northrop Grumman RQ-4 alliance ground surveillance (AGS) program, but the remaining NATO partners are “very close” to signing a contract, according to sources familiar with the negotiations. The decision means AGS will lose another source of funding that must be compensated for by the 13 NATO members still committed …. Denmark also decided to withdraw from the partnership acquiring a six-aircraft RQ-4 fleet in June 2010. Meanwhile, Northrop and NATO officials are likely to sign a contract to launch the development phase of the AGS programme within several days. The contract award may still have to be approved by each of the national partners before it becomes official ….”
• “Two Canadian Forces members were listed on the National Sex Offender Registry, as of this spring, the Chief of the Defence Staff, has confirmed. “As of 11 May 2011, two Canadian Forces members were known to be subject to a SOIRA (Sex Offender Information Registration Act) order,” Gen. Walter Natynczyk said in a letter to Defence Minister Peter MacKay that was tabled in Parliament this week. Gen. Natynczyk said he has the power to temporarily exempt CF members from certain sex offender registry obligations, but noted he has never done so. Although a top government official told Huffington Post Canada the two members are still serving, Capt. Scott Costen, a Department of National Defence spokesman cautioned that administrative reviews, which are are launched after court martials or civilian criminal proceedings call into question the suitability of a member’s continued service, may be underway to release individuals from their military positions ….”
• Some Twitter updates from the boss of Canada’s Army.  1) Senior Canadian medic recognized by U.S.  “BGen Hilary Jaeger was awarded the US Meritorious Service Medal for her outstanding leadership and great contribution to ISAF mission.”  2)  Change of assignment for senior Canadian officer working with U.S. forces.  “Great visit III Corps and Fort Hood. Atkinson‘s were awesome ambassadors for Canada. Welcome Milner‘s” (more on the senior Canadian appointment switch-around from the Fort Hood base newspaper here)
• PM on Syria  Time for the boss to go.  “…. The Assad regime has lost all legitimacy by killing its own people to stay in power. I join with President Obama and other members of the international community in calling on President Assad to vacate his position, relinquish power and step down immediately. The Syrian people have a right to decide for themselves the next steps for Syria’s future ….”  More from Postmedia News here and Agence France-Presse here.
• Lew-Mac on NATO:  “…. (Historian Jack) Granatstein rightly points out that, “In diplomacy as in baseball, it’s three strikes and you’re out. Afghanistan was strike one; Libya was strike two. And strike three?” he asks. I suggest strike three already happened in 1999 during NATO’s 50th birthday celebrations when it was frantically searching for a role and an enemy now that the Cold War was over. It found an out of area mission bombing Serbia and Kosovo in support of the Kosovo Liberation Army, at the time a terrorist movement according to the CIA. Seventy-nine days of bombing later, Serbian infrastructure was devastated but her security forces were still defiant and little damaged. Diplomacy took over and NATO capitulated on the two poison pills in the Rambouillet Agreement that “justified” the bombing campaign in the first place, that is to say, NATO freedom of movement throughout Serbia and a referendum on Kosovo independence within three years. As a result of this Russian-led diplomacy Serbian forces pulled out of Kosovo. NATO’s military mission had failed which in my book makes it three strikes in 12 years ….”
• MORE criminals (not just war criminals) on the CBSA “help us find these folks” web site – more from CTV.ca.
• Meanwhile, “Anyone defending foreign criminals remaining here are naively ignoring their potential threat or are driven by unknown motives, Canada’s public safety minister warned Thursday. Vic Toews said some Canadians “condemn our soldiers as war criminals,” but not foreigners evading deportation to face charges of crimes against humanity. On Sun News, he said such stances — including Amnesty International objecting to the government seeking public help to catch 30 suspected war criminals, plus the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) seeking killer Omar Khadr’s return — exhibit a “culture gap. “Don’t you people understand what is going on in the world … there are some bad people out there,” Toews told Ezra Levant, host of The Source ….”
• “Several Canadian cities will be receiving artifacts from Hangar 17 — a makeshift museum inside New York’s John F. Kennedy International airport that houses pieces from the 9/11 wreckage. Thousands of meticulously catalogued steel beams, crushed cars and fire trucks can be found inside the 80,000-square-foot hangar that’s rarely open to the public. Tom Doucette, executive director of The Military Museums in Calgary, said they will be receiving a 15-foot long piece of steel from one of the fallen World Trade Center towers that weighs just under 3,000 pounds ….”
• “Just as they did during active duty, the Olympus and Okanagan continue to slip silently along Canada’s waterways. These days, however, they’re not doing so unnoticed. After all, it’s difficult to miss the 1,250-tonne submarines that are taking a voyage from Halifax to Port Maitland – especially when they’re travelling above the water. Decommissioned by the Canadian Department of National Defense, the former submarines are being transported on floating drydocks towed by barges. At the end of the journey, they’ll meet their fate. The Oberon class submarines are scheduled to be scrapped by Port Colborne-based Marine Recycling Corp. at the company’s Port Maitland shipyard. Now it’s just a matter of getting them there ….”

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MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 8 Aug 11

• Libya Mission  New boss, new reorganization for Canada’s effort in Libya. “Brigadier-General Derek Joyce assumed command of Task Force Libeccio today during a ceremony held at Allied Joint Force Command, Naples, Italy. The task force, which assumes a new, more streamlined structure, will continue Canadian Forces’ activities in support of Operation MOBILE. Concurrent with the assumption of command Task Force Naples personnel and functions were incorporated into the new structure of Task Force Libeccio. Task Force Naples was responsible for coordinating the participation of all Canadian Task Forces within Operation MOBILE. “The task I was given was extremely rewarding in that Task Force Naples worked very hard at providing support and sustainment to the air component of Operation MOBILE, and to Task Force CHARLOTTETOWN, patrolling the waters off the coast of Libya,” said Colonel Paul Ormsby, Commander of Task Force Naples ….”
• Afghanistan (1)  The last of the last “heading into the fight” ROTOs is back (article in French).
• Afghanistan (2)  Some of the bosses talk about the mission (via CF Info-Machine) – video and transcript.
• Afghanistan (3)  “August 7th is not an official statutory holiday but a day for commemoration and for the families who lost their loved ones in peacekeeping missions for Canada, it’s a day to heal. 25-year-old Steven Stock was a Combat Engineer with the Canadian Forces and was killed in Afghanistan in 2008. His father, David, said this day is important because it means his son will never be forgotten and it helps their family grieve. “It’s an emotional release for us all as well and it just heals,” he said. “The more we do these things, the more it heals.” ….”  More from the Veterans Affairs Canada Info-Machine here.
• “Cpl. Andrew Knisley has known his share of frustration with the artificial leg he’s worn for the past two years. The prosthetic limb, which straps to his pelvis, does not allow him to easily navigate stairs or uneven terrain. Last week, for instance, his knee unexpectedly gave out as he walked across a beach on the Ottawa River. “I went down like a sack of potatoes,” says Knisley, 27, whose right leg was destroyed by a bomb in Afghanistan. But recently at the Ottawa Hospital Rehabilitation Centre, Knisley received a new prosthetic limb, the X2, that he hopes will significantly improve his mobility. Knisley is the third Canadian soldier to be fitted with the device, which represents the latest in artificial knee technology ….”
• Wounded warriors take on Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa (video via CTV.ca).
• “University of Regina researcher Mathew Fetzner has seen the mental toll that war can have. The 27-year-old is now a doctoral student in the university’s psychology department, but was once a military man himself. His first degree was a bachelor of arts in psychology from Royal Military College in Kingston, Ont. He reached the rank of corporal and spent six years in reserve units. Fetzner’s grandfather served in Korea and his brother is a captain based at CFB Gagetown. Fetzner was never deployed himself, but watched his buddies go overseas …. That experience is prompting Fetzner’s research on the effects of aerobic exercise on reducing post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. This week, he was awarded a Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship by Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Fetzner will get $50,000 per year for three years through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. “My ultimate goal for this is to find ways to better treat individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder,” Fetzner says ….”
• F-35 Tug o’ War  One blogger’s view:  “…. I can see how the F-35’s stealth capability and relatively short range (it won’t make it from one end of the Arctic to the other without expensive in-air refuelling) might be the perfect jet fighter for say, Israel or American adventures in the Middle East. But for Canada? We don’t know for sure, because the statement of requirements is not public. And that breeds the suspicion that they were written with what the Americans had in mind, not with what Canada needed ….”
• And we should be surprised the U.S. has intellegence and other government agencies keeping an eye on the economies of its major trading partners?  “The CIA secretly painted Pierre Trudeau as a politician torn between being a leader of the Third World and a genuine player with global industrialized nations, declassified records show. The January 1982 assessment of the Liberal prime minister’s ambitions is among several detailed — and until now virtually unknown — analyses of the Canadian economy by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Through the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, The Canadian Press obtained more than a dozen CIA reports that explore various aspects of Canadian commerce, industry and technology during the Cold War era. The assessments reveal a keen interest in Canadian affairs on the part of an agency better known for waging a covert war against East Bloc spies in the decades leading up to the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall ….” Sure would be interesting to see the reports now that they’re public….
• “German prisoners of war who spent much of the Second World War in a Manitoba logging camp purchased mail-order items from the Eaton’s catalogue, kept themselves impeccably groomed and even staged “temporary” escapes into the nearby countryside. Those are just some of the findings of a three-year archeological dig in Riding Mountain National Park, located about 300 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, where the Whitewater PoW camp was located. Adrian Myers, a PhD student from Stanford University, has been leading the project since 2009, when he first arranged an agreement with Parks Canada to access the site which had sat neglected and abandoned for decades, little more than a few overgrown foundations still visible. The site was once a bustling wilderness work camp housing about 500 people. About 450 German Afrika Korps soldiers were sent to the camp after their capture in October 1943 during the Second Battle of El-Alamein in Egypt. They were kept at the camp until October 1945 ….”

MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 23 Jul 11

 

• Canada’s PM on explosion, multiple killings in Oslo, Norway:  “…. We deeply regret the loss of life and injuries resulting from the explosion which occurred today in the government quarters, where the Prime Minister’s Office and other government offices are located. We were also horrified to learn that a gunman has opened fire at a youth camp at Utøya. Canada condemns these barbarous and senseless acts of violence and our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, witnesses and all those affected by these attacks ….”  More on the attacks here, here, here and here.
• CF help with northern Ontario forest fire evacuations, Operation FORGE, winding down.  “After successfully evacuating more than 3,600 residents from seven northern Ontario communities that had been threatened by wildfires, Canadian Forces airlift is no longer needed as part of the Province of Ontario-led evacuation efforts …. Six CC-130 Hercules military transport aircraft flew a total of 42 missions, evacuating 3,614 people from Deer Lake, Cat Lake, Fort Hope, Keewaywin, Kingfisher Lake, Kasabonika and Sandy Lake since July 6, 2011. Half of those flights took place in the past three days ….”
• Ooopsie.  “The Royal Canadian Legion is accusing the Conservative government of discrimination for offering support services only to Afghanistan veterans instead of all military personnel. At issue is the Legacy of Care Program announced in September 2010 by former Veterans Affairs Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn and Defence Minister Peter MacKay, which promised five major support services to Canadian Forces veterans. But an amended statement released this month says support programs, such the attendant care benefit, the caregiver benefit and the spousal education upgrade benefit would be restricted to only those who served in Afghanistan. “Here at the Royal Canadian Legion we believe that all veterans are equal in their service and sacrifice to their country and should be treated equitably,” Legion spokesman Pierre Allard told the Toronto Star Friday. The program promised five initiatives: barrier-free transitional accommodations, support services while in transitional accommodations, the Canadian Forces attendant care benefit, the spousal education upgrade program and enhanced case management support for seriously ill and injured personnel. “There was no mention that any element of this was going to be Afghanistan only,” Allard said. Patricia Varga, the Legion’s Dominion president said in a statement she was “appalled that such blatant discrimination is taking place.” ….”  More from Global News here, and good discussion on this one at Army.ca.
• Afghanistan (1a)  “Canada’s last combat commander in Afghanistan returned home Friday to proclaim victory after nearly 10 years of fighting a war that took the lives of 157 Canadians. “We definitely flattened the insurgency,” a smiling Brig.-Gen. Dean Milner said after arriving aboard a military airbus with 117 returning soldiers. Tears, hugs, kisses and shouts of joy echoed through a large hangar as families stood on tiptoes, snapping pictures of loved ones marching from the plane after months of separation. Defence Minister Peter MacKay, Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Walt Natynczyk and Lt.-Gen. Peter Devlin — responsible for land forces — welcomed the troops while a lone piper played. Canada’s combat role ended earlier this month – a responsibility now in the hands of the Americans ….”
• Afghanistan (1b)  “The commander of Canada’s last combat mission in Kandahar arrived home Friday, confident that his soldiers had “flattened” insurgents and put the troubled region on the path to stability. “Afghanistan still has its challenges but we feel that there is significant improvement in the fight against the insurgents,” said Brig.-Gen. Dean Milner. “I’m guardedly optimistic that things are moving in the right direction.” Milner arrived at Ottawa International Airport along with more than 100 soldiers who had worked in Canada’s military headquarters in Kandahar. The combat mission ended on July 1 with Canada transferring responsibility to the American military ….”  Even more at CBC.ca.
• Afghanistan (1c)  CF’s Info-Machine version of the General’s arrival:  “Brigadier-General Dean Milner, the last commander of Canada’s combat mission in Afghanistan, and the final members of his team returned home from Afghanistan this afternoon. Meeting them at the Ottawa International Airport from Afghanistan were friends and family of the returning members, as well as the Honourable Peter MacKay, the Minister of National Defence, General Walt Natynczyk, the Chief of the Defence Staff, and Lieutenant-General Peter Devlin, the Chief of the Land Staff. “Today’s return of members of the Canadian Forces marks a great milestone in Canadian history. Brigadier-General Milner, his troops, and their predecessors have made incredible contributions to improving the lives and security of the people of Afghanistan, have earned the respect of their NATO peers, and have given Canadians from across the country a newfound pride in our men and women in uniform,” said Minister Peter MacKay …. “
• Afghanistan (2)  NOW the media comes up with stories about the CF & Afghanistan, after the mission and highlighting some of the heroism (specifics on awards here and here).
• Afghanistan (3a)  One columnist’s view:  “Yours and mine weren’t the hearts and minds Canadian soldiers were aiming for when they first landed in Kandahar amid the stratospherically high hopes of early 2002. But as the last of our combat troops trickle home nearly a decade later, few would dispute it is Canada they won. Death by death, injury by injury, the hard slog of the longest war transformed not only the Canadian Forces, but the way Canadians see them ….”
• Afghanistan (3b)  More on the interpreters trying to get into Canada.  “…. The lights are set to go out on Ottawa’s fast-track immigration program for Afghan interpreters who have worked on the Canadian mission. Falstan worked for the Canadian army for three months and technically does not qualify for entry to Canada. A terp needs one year of service to qualify, he said. “The danger is the same whether you work for five years — or two days. No different,” he said. “That is the big trouble for everyone. The Taliban, they know about me. They will kill me. They’ll never let me live in Afghanistan.” ….”
• Afghanistan (4)  “Canada’s foremost expert in military law said legislators should look into possibly changing certain aspects of the National Defence Act, which bars active servicemen and women from having sexual relationships with one another. Retired Col. Michel Drapeau spoke to QMI Agency after retired Brig.-Gen. Daniel Menard was demoted and fined Thursday after admitting to having a sexual affair with a subordinate while in Afghanistan. Menard, 45, was a rising star in the Canadian Forces. He was appointed 18 months ago to general at just 43 years of age. Now, Menard said that his criminal record for having consensual sex with a soldier is hurting his ability to find a post-military job. Drapeau said that the non-fraternization rule is important but questioned whether violating this rule should be a criminal offence …. “I’m suggesting that there is something for parliamentarians, and the legislature in particular, to have a look and say, ‘Is this the best way to deal with this issue?'” Drapeau said. “How you apply (the law) and whether or not you criminalize it, as we have done in this case, is maybe open for federal debate.” ….”
• The political backlash has begun over even the slightest potential of military search and rescue services being privatized.  “Two federal members of parliament from Newfoundland and Labrador are alarmed at news that the federal government is looking at privatizing some elements of search and rescue services. “The notion of privatization of search and rescue capability is abhorrent,” said Jack Harris, the MP for St. John’s East and the NDP defense critic. A statement from the government on Thursday said that the Department of National Defence, which is responsible for fixed-wing search and rescue, is looking at all options to ensure the best possible equipment and service ….”  More from the St. John’s Telegram here.
• Latest on Big Honkin’ Ship Building:  “The East Coast will be competing against the West Coast to win the right to build $25 billion in warships for the Canadian navy. Officials with the Halifax and Vancouver shipyards confirmed Thursday that their parent companies have bid on both federal shipbuilding contracts up for grabs. “We are very confident in our bids, our facilities, our partnerships, and most importantly, our workforce,” Jim Irving, CEO of Irving Shipbuilding Inc., which owns the Halifax yard, said in a news release. A spokeswoman for the third bidder, a consortium that includes Davie Yards of Levis, Que., said the newly restructured shipyard is “mainly focusing on the non-combat package.” ….”
• F-35 Tug o’ War  Former signals officer/signals intelligence processor says we need the F-35s, bad.  “…. a nation that is incapable of contributing to its own defence is a lame-duck nation, vulnerable to any manner of exploitation and oppression. We need to maintain a warfighting capability, because military capabilities take decades to acquire, develop and hone, precluding the possibility that we can just purchase it if ever the need should arise. We need the F-35 to provide Canada with an effective, multi-role, inter-operable air warfare capability.”
• What’s Canada Buying?  Remember the search for someone to check out the naval cemetery at CFB Stadacona (13th bullet here)?  More on that from The Canadian Press:  “They are scattered throughout a small military cemetery in Halifax — dozens of weathered headstones dating back more than a century, bearing the names of seamen and civilians associated with the Royal Navy. The grave markers were meant to stand as enduring tokens of respect, but they also serve as a reminder of the many more men, women and children buried here whose names cannot be found on any memorial. Now the Department of National Defence has launched a project in hopes of preserving potentially hundreds of unmarked graves at Canadian Forces Base Halifax. “The hope is to find out where all these graves are,” says historian Rick Sanderson, executive director of the Maritime Command Museum located on the base. “The graveyard is very important to the navy because the origins of the Canadian navy are with the British navy and to a certain extent, the French navy as well.” ….”
• “A Canadian Forces pilot hailed for ejecting from a fighter jet moments before a crash a year ago is now working as a flight instructor in Saskatchewan.  Capt. Brian Bews was making a low-speed pass at low altitude on a practice run for the Alberta International Airshow on July 23, 2010, when he had to eject from the jet seconds before it smashed into the airstrip at the Lethbridge airport. The one-year anniversary of the crash has brought back many memories, said Bews in a recent interview from CFB Moose Jaw ….”
• Well done, marchers.  “After four difficult days of walking, and hundreds of sore feet, the members of the Canadian Forces (CF) contingent successfully completed the 95th annual International Four Days Marches Nijmegen. Consisting of more than 200 soldiers, sailors, airmen and airwomen from units across Canada, the Canadian contingent can be proud of themselves for having finished one of the most prestigious long-distance walking events in the world …. the Canadian contingent …. marched 40 km a day, for four days in a row, while wearing standard combat clothing and carrying a military rucksack weighing at least 10 kilograms.  After completing the grueling 160 km march, members of the CF contingent were presented the Four Day Marches Cross by (Brigadier-General J.C. Madower, Assistant Chief Military Personnel) during a ceremony held at Charlemagne Field, Nijmegen ….”
• Remember Canada’s call to help track down the Top 30 War Criminals in Canada?  “Immigration Minister Jason Kenney says suspected war criminal Cristobal Gonzalez-Ramirez has been arrested in Alberta after authorities received several tips from the public. Kenney made the announcement at a press conference in Montreal on Friday, just one day after the government launched a website containing the names of 30 alleged war criminals. “Our government received a strong mandate from Canadians to keep our streets and communities safe, and maintain the integrity of our immigration system,” Kenney said in a statement. “We asked the public for assistance in apprehending these individuals and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.” ….”
• New Winnipeg Jets logo channels old RCAF emblems (more from media here and here):

MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 22 Jul 11

• What’s Canada Buying – Honkin’ Big Ship Building (1)  “A Quebec Superior Court judge approved Thursday morning the sale of Davie Shipyard to Upper Lakes Group, giving the new owner the green light to enter the race to bid on potentially lucrative federal shipbuilding contracts. The deadline for bidding on the largest chunk of the federal government work, worth $33 billion, in the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy is set at 2 p.m. ET Thursday. B.C.’s Seaspan, and Nova Scotia’s Irving shipyard are bidding as well ….”  More in a company news release here.
• What’s Canada Buying – Honkin’ Big Ship Building (2) “A blockbuster bid submitted Thursday could give St. Catharines’ shipyard a big chunk of a multi-billion-dollar federal shipbuilding contract. The bid by Upper Lakes-owned Davie shipyards would see Seaway Marine and Industrial dry docks and Davie build the federal government’s large non-combat ships. Montreal’s SNC-Lavelin is the joint venture partner with Upper Lakes in the submission. If successful, these projects — which include oceanographic and fisheries vessels — could add 1,000 new jobs to St. Catharines. The work, worth up to $5 billion for two shipyards, would be spread out over about seven years. It could mean about 1,500 jobs in Quebec, plus 500 shipyard jobs in St. Catarines and another 500 sub-contractor jobs in this area ….”
• What’s Canada Buying – Honkin’ Big Ship Building (3)  “Canadian officials are putting aside a bid by Davie Yards for a contract under a C$35 billion ($37.1 billion) shipbuilding program until its eligibility can be determined, a senior official said on Thursday. Three bids, including Davie’s, were received by the federal government Thursday morning, said a senior official from the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy secretariat. The other two bids were from Vancouver Shipyards and Irving Shipbuilding Inc. The official said they are established eligible bidders ….”
• What’s Canada Buying – Honkin’ Big Ship Building (4)  “Halifax looks like the front-runner for a $25-billion contract to build about 20 warships, an Ottawa insider says. The Irving-owned Halifax Shipyard is competing against Vancouver Shipyards, owned by Seaspan Marine Corp. of British Columbia, and a consortium that includes Davie Yards Inc. of Levis, Que. Besides the main prize, there’s also $8 billion in other work up for grabs building coast guard icebreakers and replacements for the navy’s supply ships and $2 billion to be spent on building small craft and repair work. “I would bet right now that Halifax would get the military one and probably Vancouver would get the civilian one,” said a source who spoke on condition of anonymity. The larger project would require a lot of trained workers, which Halifax has, said the source, an expert in marine procurement ….”
• What’s Canada Buying (1)  Someone to research how groups perceive each other as part of “winning hearts and minds” research, AGAIN (4th time) with the “someone to operate, maintain facilities in, around CFS Alert” bid, and “applied mathematics, physics and chemistry” teaching at CFB Gagetown.
• What’s Canada Buying? (2)  More, from Mark Collins, on reading between the lines on fixed-wing search and rescue planes for the CF, and some interesting discussion from people in the biz at Army.ca.
• Afghanistan (1)  Former TF Afghanistan commander Daniel Menard pleads guilty to screwing around, fined, (retroactively) demoted – more from The Canadian Press, CBC.ca, the National Post, the Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.
• Afghanistan (2)  Outgoing TF Afghanistan boss in Ottawa today to speak to media.
• Afghanistan (3)  What the drones did.  “…. Canada deployed three reconnaissance drones – the Israeli-designed CU-170 Heron – for the first time in Afghanistan and brought in a dedicated air force unit of 39 people to operate them. Their first flight was in January 2009. Their last flight was last week. Through 30 months of operations, the Herons logged more than 15,000 hours of flight time. They were in the air almost every day for 22 out of 24 hours. There was rarely a time when they weren’t gliding over the dry landscape of Kandahar at speeds that never reached more than a mere 120 knots. Night and day their main job was to search out ambushes and insurgents planting improvised explosive devices (IEDs), the weapon of choice for the Taliban. Their data is fed directly to wing command headquarters, task force headquarters and the commander in the field in real time so he always knows what’s happening around him. One of their most recent triumphs was to save an American patrol from an ambush, Col. Al Meinzinger, commander of the air wing, said. “They were saving lives up to the last minute,” he said ….”
• Afghanistan (4)  I’m shocked, SHOCKED!  Any chance of sharing the documents, Canadian Press?  “Canada’s diplomatic corps in Kabul did not go thirsty. Hospitality forms show embassy staff and dignitaries drank plenty of booze while posted to Afghanistan, an Islamic country where imbibing is not just taboo, it’s against the law. The embassy consumed close to 3,000 bottles of alcoholic beverages from mid-2007 to last November. The tab for the beer, wine and hard liquor was at least $20,000. The Canadian Press obtained hospitality diaries from the Canadian Embassy in Kabul under the Access to Information Act. The forms give the Foreign Affairs Department the cost of the embassy’s food and drink orders, along with guest lists and descriptions of lunches, dinners and other functions ….” 
• CF forest fire evacuation now named OP Forge.  “Since Wednesday evening, the Canadian Forces have evacuated over 500 more Canadians from northern Ontario communities, which continue to be threatened by wildfires. Five Canadian Forces CC-130 Hercules transport aircraft began flying at first light this morning from Winnipeg, Manitoba, picking up people from Sandy Lake, Kingfisher Lake and Deer Lake First Nations communities and delivering them to Thunder Bay, Ontario …. Working alongside federal, municipal and provincial partners in the forest fire-ravaged communities, hundreds of Canadian Forces personnel, including aircrew, planning staff and Canadian Rangers, are involved in the ongoing disaster relief effort known as Operation FORGE …. Operation FORGE is the Canadian Forces contribution to the Whole-of-Government effort to assist the Government of Ontario in the emergency evacuation of Canadians threatened by the current wildfires. This support is currently provided mainly through airlift conducted by CC-130 Hercules aircraft from 14 Wing in Greenwood, Nova Scotia, 8 Wing in Trenton, Ontario, and 17 Wing in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Canadian Rangers from the 3rd Canadian Ranger Patrol Group are also assisting in some communities by coordinating the logistical plans, loading aircraft and communicating with the families of the community members. In addition to Canadian Rangers, the CF also deployed ground coordination teams to assist with organizing community members onto military aircraft for evacuation. Since the beginning of July, the Canadian Forces has evacuated over 3,000 residents from the communities of Deer Lake, Cat Lake, Fort Hope, Keewaywin, Kingfisher Lake, Kasabonika and Sandy Lake.”
• Wanted:  Help from Canadians to track down illegal immigrant war criminals – here’s the list.
• “The Honourable Steven Blaney, Minister of Veterans Affairs, and Kellie Leitch, Member of Parliament for Simcoe–Grey and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and to the Minister of Labour, announced today $50,000 in Government of Canada support for a project in Alliston, Ontario, to honour Veterans and those who made the ultimate sacrifice …. The Royal Canadian Legion Branch #171 is receiving a maximum of $50,000 to construct a new memorial to commemorate local citizens who sacrificed their lives in the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War, peacekeeping missions and in Afghanistan ….”

MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 19 Jul 11

• CF getting busier helping fly evacuees out of remote northern Ontario communities because of forest fires.  “The Canadian Forces have supported municipal and provincial authorities in Ontario in evacuating 385 residents threatened by wildfires in the communities of Fort Hope and Sandy Lake. That number continues to climb as Canadian Forces aircraft continue the airlift of threatened Canadians out of Sandy Lake …. Beginning on Sunday, members of the Eabametoong First Nation were evacuated by the Canadian Forces from Fort Hope to Greenstone (Geraldton), Ontario using a CC-130 Hercules military transport aircraft tasked from 424 Squadron at 8 Wing Trenton. In total, 265 people were transported to safety, with the operation ceasing as of Monday morning. Ten members of the 3rd Canadian Rangers Patrol Group assisted in this evacuation effort by coordinating logistics, communicating with families and in the loading of the aircraft. Beginning today, members of the Sandy Lake First Nation were evacuated from Sandy Lake to Sioux Lookout using a CC-130 Hercules aircraft tasked from 435 Squadron at 17 Wing Winnipeg. In total, 120 people were transported to safety as of late Monday afternoon. Fourteen Canadian Rangers also supported the Sandy Lake evacuation ….”
• Wanted:  Media up for a short (or longer) trip to the Arctic to watch the next Canadian Forces sovereignty exercise, Nanook 2011.
• Libya Mission  Scott Taylor’s take on a possible future.  “…. From the outset of the campaign against Libya, the U.S. made it clear they were not going to become fully engulfed in yet another war. Within NATO, not all members agreed to contribute to the enforcement of the United Nations-authorized no-fly zone and only a handful conceded to launching bombing attacks. Of those that did, Norway has now backed out, the Netherlands is ceasing their bombing role and the Italians are hinting they want out of the whole affair. The French and Brits have been the most belligerent players in this game but now even they are looking for a face-saving political solution that may even include Gadhafi remaining in Libya. If that does transpire, Canada is going to have not just a big seat but the only seat left at the proverbial Libyan rebel table. One has to wonder, why?”
• An Al Jazeera journalist based in Bethlehem opines about Canada’s nature.  “…. If the missions in Afghanistan and Libya say anything, it’s that an aggressive Canada intends to be taken seriously.”
• Afghanistan (1)  More “so long, combat mission” coverage, this time from Agence France-Presse.  “Canada’s top general in Afghanistan held his head high as his combat troops flew out of the country on Monday, even if the long war against the Taliban shows little sign of ending. With a spotlight shining on a red maple leaf emblazoned on the aircraft taking them home, Brigadier General Dean Milner led 120 of his troops onto the tarmac of Kandahar’s sprawling airfield built on the same desert where the Taliban was born. It was a farewell of brief, but emotional, handshakes and embraces after nine years of fighting the Taliban which has left 157 Canadian troops dead — their names etched on a marble memorial left behind. “It feels good heading back to family,” said Milner, who refused a soldier’s offer to carry his bag under sand blasts from the desert. “It has been an outstanding mission, with a lot of great accomplishments and I hope there will be good transition,” he added, before giving a thumbs up and climbing aboard the plane ….”
• Afghanistan (2)  A bit more on fast-tracking Afghan interpreters coming into Canada.
• Afghanistan (3)  This, from Mark Collins:  “This rather fatuous Canadian Press article in effect makes a case–with a distinct undertone of anti-Americanism–that if Canada had had its own foreign human intelligence (HUMINT) agency then we would have been much more aware of the
  likelihood of an upsurge in Taliban violence in Kandahar when the decision was made in 2005 to deploy the Canadian Forces for combat operations in that province ….”
• “Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who is expected to conduct a realignment of the bureaucracy after a winning a majority government on May 2, recently shuffled his foreign and defence policy adviser to Agriculture Canada, along with a number of other top changes. Critics say the foreign policy adviser position is an influential one, but that it’s up to the PM to determine the depth of that influence ….”  So far, the old adviser, Claude Carrier , has been moved without a new one being named yet.
• What’s Canada Buying?  Wanted:  someone with expertise in radar systems for research, design work.

MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 8 Jul 11

• Afghanistan (1)  The “Combat Mission is Over – Officially, Signed-off Over” story array, as covered by the Associated Press, The Canadian Press, Postmedia News/Global TV (more), the National Post, QMI/Sun Media (more), Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and The Telegraph (UK).
• Afghanistan (2)  Funny how this wasn’t making it into the media earlier – pity.  “Lt. Mahmoud Siddiqi clearly didn’t get the official memo. Which goes something like this: All fine here in Panjwaii District, nothing to fear, we’ve got a handle on it, and safe trip home Kanadjans. Instead, sitting cross-legged in his exceptionally neat officer’s quarters — brass teakettle on the portable stove, plastic flowers in a vase, handwoven Afghan rugs spread across the floor — he says this: “If foreigners don’t help us, we’re doomed.’’ His naturally hangdog face droops further as Siddiqi contemplates a post-Canadian Panjwaii — Maple Leaf disappearing, Stars and Stripes flying instead at this forward operating base ….”
• Afghanistan (3)  An overview of some of the numbers. “Canada’s combat role in Kandahar ended Thursday with a death toll of 154 men and three women soldiers, and four Canadian civilians. About 25,000 Canadian soldiers, sailors and air personnel have served in Afghanistan in groups of between 2,500 and nearly 4,000 troops at a time, doing tours of between six months and year. A new training mission that will eventually number 950 advisers and training staff began two months ago in Kabul. All but a handful of the Canadians to have been killed in Afghanistan died in Kandahar. Of the 157 military deaths, 137 were combat casualties. The other 20 died in what the military describes as “non-hostile incidents.” ….”
• Afghanistan:  Canada’s Legacy (1)  MORE second guessing Canada’s legacy:  “On Thursday, in the wake of the deaths of 157 brave Canadian soldiers and the wounding of hundreds more, the U.S. Army officially took over Canada’s battle space in Kandahar. Ours was a job well done, and it is now farewell ….”
• Afghanistan:  Canada’s Legacy (2)  “On Tuesday, Canada officially ended its combat mission in Afghanistan. It should never have started. The war has been a dismal failure. It did not achieve its primary aim of capturing or killing terror chief Osama Bin Laden. A U.S. assassination squad operating in Pakistan finally did that. Nor has it defeated the Taliban. As Canadian and other NATO-led troops prepare for their final 2014 withdrawal, the insurgents remain dangerous, active and unbowed. They will almost certainly be playing a role in government again — probably soon ….”
• Afghanistan:  Canada’s Legacy (3)  “…. on balance, was the Afghanistan mission a success? I’d argue it made the army better, gave it confidence, and it won respect for Canada among nations of the world that matter. So Canadian lives lost were not in vain, and indeed did their country proud.”
• Afghanistan:  Canada’s Legacy (4)  “…. You can’t guarantee any military mission will unfold seamlessly, scoring victory after victory as it marches relentlessly towards success. But in cases that deserve it, and which demand a response, you can, and should, try. Which is what Canada did, and we should all be proud we did.”
• Afghanistan:  Canada’s Legacy (5)  Someone finally gets it right about Canada’s legacy.  “Was Canada’s war in Afghanistan worth it? It is an obvious question as Canada formally signs away its combat responsibilities in Kandahar to a U.S. task force Thursday morning. But this is surely a matter that will be far better answered by historians in 20 or 30 years than by anyone today, no matter how familiar they are with this beguiling, frustrating, immensely complicated country and Canada’s efforts since its first infantrymen set foot here nine years and five months ago ….”
• So, what’s next for the CF, glass is half empty version?  “With the Kandahar killing fields now officially clear of Canadian soldiers, a daunting military challenge lies ahead. The new enemy is boot camp boredom, the recalibrated target is surplus staffing, the likely result is the return to a military funding decade of semi-darkness. Now in the post-Afghanistan era, Canada’s armed forces have lost their mojo — and that’s a very dangerous dangle in front of a government looking for easy deficit elimination routes. In short, no bullets flying, no big bucks flowing ….”
• One former officer’s take on “peacekeeping”:  “…. The time has come to close the book on peacekeeping in Canada. We should render appreciation and thanks to those who have served, but now get on with dealing with new realities. Current operations in Libya are one example of the latter. Rather than peacekeepers, Canada and its allies are applying combat power to defeat a tyrant who has oppressed his people. It is that type of fight – for justice and liberty – that we should commemorate, and continue.”
• Libya Mission:  HMCS Vancouver on its way downrange to Libya.
• CDS says he’s not going anywhere, even if a top NATO job is opening up soon.  “…. Gen. Walter Natynczyk was named chief of defence staff by Prime Minister Stephen Harper three years ago. The appointment usually lasts about three years and Natynczyk has just recently celebrated his third anniversary. “The mandate of the chief of defence staff isn’t codified,” he said in an interview with The Canadian Press. “As I look through the rogue’s gallery for chiefs of defence, one went nine years and another went five. Rick Hillier went 3 1/2. “I will go as long as the government of Canada asks me to serve.” Natynczyk said one of his main goals right now, with the end of Canada’s combat mission in Afghanistan, is to make sure he continues to improve conditions for every soldier under his command. There has been speculation that Natynczyk could be in line to become NATO’s top military commander. There will be a vacancy next year when Italian Admiral Giampaolo di Paolo steps down as chairman of the NATO Military Committee. “My name’s not in the hat. I know that some of my colleagues have tried to recruit me to throw my name in the hat, but, again, I serve at the pleasure of the country,” Natynczyk said ….”
• CF helping evacuate sick, elderly from remote northern Ontario First Nation – more here.
• Journalists-in-training help the CF by printing faux papers, propaganda sheets as part of exercise (via CF Info-Machine).
• Condolences to family, colleagues and friends (1)  “Police on Tuesday found the body of a military officer from CFB Kingston who went missing during an early morning swim in Lac Saint Laurent near Gatineau, Que. Maj. Damon Murray, a member of 1 Wing Headquarters at CFB Kingston, was reported missing on July 4. He had set out for an early morning swim that day and never returned ….”
• Condolences to family, colleagues and friends (2)  “Friends and fellow soldiers were remembering Trooper Troy Barnes Thursday praising a young life suddenly cut too short. Flags were half-mast outside the regimental headquarters of the Royal Canadian Dragoons as the 24-year-old armoured soldier was being remembered by his commanding officer as a “big, burly likable man” who will be sorely missed by his comrades. “He was a quiet, inquisitive fellow,” remarked Lt.-Col. Dyrald Cross, who had just returned from meeting with the trooper’s family. Trooper Barnes’ sudden death earlier this week shocked the unit. On Tuesday, his armoured troop went over to Dundonald Hall for an afternoon game of beach volleyball. During the match, the soldier walked off the court showing signs of distress. He then collapsed. Along with soldiers, Personnel Support Program (PSP) workers and an off-duty base firefighter made several attempts to resuscitate him. He was then rushed to Pembroke Regional Hospital where he died an hour later. A post-mortem has been scheduled ….”
• What’s Canada Buying (1)  A Canadian company – FlightSafety Canada – is being chosen to do simulator training for the CC-138 Twin Otter for between US$300K and US$400K.  Any objections?
• What’s Canada Buying (2)  Now that we’ve done a tender to collect samples to do research to improve blood testing for divers (more here), we need someone to analyze all the data.
• What’s Canada Buying (3)  Wanted:  panel of medical experts to independently review medical research into Tasers and other “Conducted Energy Weapons” – more details about specialties and questions to be answered in Statement of Work downloadable (7 page PDF) here.
• East coast air force worries about a proposed wind farm?  “The Canadian military says that a wind farm proposed for the Annapolis Valley will interfere with flight operations at its large airbase at Greenwood. CBC News has learned that the Department of National Defence notified Sprott Power several months ago that its proposed wind farm would interrupt radar coverage. The military’s concerns became public at a meeting in Bridgetown, Nova Scotia on Tuesday. The conflict between wind towers and radar installations is a national and international concern, but this is the first time the issue has been raised in Nova Scotia. The military believes wind towers can’t coexist with the radar coverage needed for aircraft operations in and out of CFB Greenwood. Sprott Power of Toronto has proposed to build a 12-tower wind farm on Hampton Mountain about 40 kilometres from Greenwood ….”

• Condolences to family, colleagues and friends (2)  “Friends and fellow soldiers were remembering Trooper Troy Barnes Thursday praising a young life suddenly cut too short. Flags were half-mast outside the regimental headquarters of the Royal Canadian Dragoons as the 24-year-old armoured soldier was being remembered by his commanding officer as a “big, burly likable man” who will be sorely missed by his comrades. “He was a quiet, inquisitive fellow,” remarked Lt.-Col. Dyrald Cross, who had just returned from meeting with the trooper’s family. Trooper Barnes’ sudden death earlier this week shocked the unit. On Tuesday, his armoured troop went over to Dundonald Hall for an afternoon game of beach volleyball. During the match, the soldier walked off the court showing signs of distress. He then collapsed. Along with soldiers, Personnel Support Program (PSP) workers and an off-duty base firefighter made several attempts to resuscitate him. He was then rushed to Pembroke Regional Hospital where he died an hour later. A post-mortem has been scheduled ….”
• What’s Canada Buying (1)  A Canadian company – FlightSafety Canada – is being chosen to do simulator training for the CC-138 Twin Otter.  Any objections?
• What’s Canada Buying (2)  Now that we’ve done a tender to collect samples to do research to improve blood testing for divers (more here), we need someone to analyze all the data.
• What’s Canada Buying (3)  Wanted:  panel of medical experts to independently review medical research into Tasers and other “Conducted Energy Weapons” – more details about specialties and questions to be answered in Statement of Work downloadable (7 page PDF) here.

MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 7 Jul 11

• Afghanistan (1a)  More “Combat Mission Over” stories, courtesy of QMI/Sun Media, the Kingston Whig-Standard, The Canadian Press (more), the Globe & Mail and Agence France-Presse.
• Afghanistan (1b)  Task Force Kandahar boss to speak to media today about mission.
• Afghanistan (2a)  Let the editorial assessments of the legacy begin!  This one, from a Canadian Senator:  “…. we went, and stayed, and extended, and then got out, except for some cosmetic training duties, and nobody has ever explained why. Yes, we pleased the Americans. Yes, we gave our army combat experience. I acknowledge that these are not inconsequential achievements. But I ask you to balance the ledger and ask yourself, “Did this war make sense to Canada?” And then you have to ask why, if it did make sense, no Canadian prime minister ever dared to explain why.”  An interesting and detailed rebutttal at Army.ca.
• Afghanistan (2b)  “…. The Canadian military’s return to prominence over the last decade has been astonishing. No longer do people joke about “a canoe and a slingshot,” and people are generally proud of our uniformed men and women. But do we really want to shift our identity from peace-loving to militaristic? Do we desire a military immune from debate and criticism? Whether it is called a war, mission, or whatever else — I have a bag that calls it an “engagement,” which makes me wonder whether Canada proposed with a grenade or a bomb from an F-18 — the Afghan experience has rejuvenated the Canadian Forces and displayed the almost impossible nature of a modern-day war against an unconventional enemy in foreboding terrain. Whether it has transformed the way we see our military for good; whether it has “Americanized” our society, remains to be seen.”
• Afghanistan (2c)  “…. Our troops served with distinction, earning praise from both coalition partners and the people whose lives they were trying to improve. Over the next three years, this country’s commitment to Afghanistan will continue. About 950 troops, based in Kabul, are to help train Afghan military and security forces. Though hopeful, we are under no illusions the future will be easy in that war-torn land.”
• Afghanistan (2d)  “…. If the objectives of invading and occupying Afghanistan, as Western leaders claim, are to liberate Afghans and especially Afghan women from a tyrannical and misogynistic government, eliminate terrorism, and provide greater global security for most people, then the mission is a dismal failure. None of these purported objectives have been accomplished to any satisfactory level. None are likely to be accomplished in the foreseeable future. It is inconceivable any of these objectives could be accomplished by launching a global war ….”
• Afghanistan (2e)  “…. We talk about the nobility of sacrifice but our motives were not noble. We sent our soldiers to die in Kandahar mainly to impress our largest trading partner, the U.S., and ensure that the border stayed open for trade. Canadians were killed to guarantee just-in-time delivery of auto parts. That is not sufficient reason.”
• Afghanistan (2f)  “…. the muddy objectives in Afghanistan kept shifting. First it was limited to hunting al-Qaeda and dislodging the Taliban. Then it was peacekeeping to stabilize the country, then fighting a counterinsurgency which really required tens of thousands more troops, mixed in with establishing democracy and sending girls to school. But the surge came almost nine years after the Taliban fell. Now, the goal is to build enough Afghan forces and broker a deal with the Taliban ….”
• Afghanistan (3)  Remember this from two weeks ago, with the Camp Mirage memorials coming back to (and staying in) Trenton?  The new monument has officially been unveiled – more here and here.
• Taliban Propaganda Watch:  Taliban deny (yet again) they’re talking with the West – except for prisoner exchanges.
• More on Russian “poking” into the Arctic – this time, with a “research expedition”.
• F-35 Tug o’ War:  “…. The question arises from any debate about fighter jets as to whether Canada is blindly following the Yanks or carving out its own relevance in the world. The Council on Hemispheric Affairs argues that, with its limited defence budget, Canada would be better off choosing less militaristic missions, focusing on disaster and humanitarian relief, peacekeeping missions, search and rescue activity and patrols along Canada’s three coasts. It’s particularly important that the public familiarize itself with the ongoing debate over the purchase of the F-35s. With a majority in Parliament, the Conservatives cannot be thwarted by their political opposition and now are entirely free to spend the money. The only impediment that could get in their way at this point is a public groundswell against the purchase.”
• What’s Canada Buying?  Wanted:  someone to teach the CF Ombudsman’s staff how to write better – more in one of the bid documents here (via Army.ca).
• What’s Canada Buying? Canada’s Minister of State for Science and Technology, Gary Goodyear, gets shown Florida high-tech. “In a sort of high-tech show and tell, Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll and Canada’s minister of state for science and technology met with UCF President John Hitt and other officials Wednesday morning …. Later in the day, Carroll and Canadian Minister Gary Goodyear met with local military officials and toured SAIC, one of the city’s high-profile simulation companies. Like Orlando, Canada has a well established simulation hub, though the focus is on medical simulation, Goodyear said. “We have very common challenges and very common opportunities,” he said.”
• “Canada’s new official Opposition appealed directly to Israel not to harm a boatload of Canadian protesters determined to break the Gaza Strip blockade. NDP Leader Jack Layton and foreign affairs critic Paul Dewar delivered that plea directly to Israel’s ambassador to Canada, Miriam Ziv, during a meeting at the opposition leader’s office in early June. They were trying to prevent a repeat of last year’s tragedy when nine activists taking part in a similar flotilla on a Turkish boat were killed in a raid by Israeli commandos. “Obviously, when there’s a loss of lives involved everyone should take heed,” Dewar said in an interview Tuesday. He and Layton urged Israel to observe “an abundance of caution and care dealing with the flotilla because it was pretty clear it was going to be happening.” Dewar said Ziv listened politely. She was not available for an interview ….”  Not to worry, though.  In spite of some sensationalist dire predictions, Canada’s ship of “kayaktivists” isn’t getting its chance to taste the Sword of Gideon just yet.