MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 25 Jan 11

• The new Canadian training mission in Afghanistan takes shape (based on 3PPCLI?) “A battle group of Canadian soldiers originally intended to backstop the withdrawal from Kandahar is expected to form the nucleus of the country’s new training mission in Afghanistan. The general commanding the transition says a battalion-sized force of soldiers from 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry had been set aside in case of emergency during the pullout, but military planners have determined it’s no longer required with the flood of American troops in the region. Brig.-Gen. Charles Lamarre says the scope of the training mission, expected to include 700 troops and 250 support staff, has yet to be determined. “We’re waiting for direction on what that structure will be; where it is Canada will put troops; and the location that will make the training mission work,” Lamarre told The Canadian Press in an interview. Whether the entire battalion or selected elements are used is still being debated ….”
• One Toronto cop’s story in Kandahar: “I spent nine months in Afghanistan, helping train police officers and patrolling with the military. I’m not a churchgoing man, but I’ve never done more praying in my life “
• Canada’s Governor General/Commander in Chief calls programs offered at Owl’s Head by ASF and Soldier On for injured soldiers “inspiring.” More about the Adaptive Sports Foundation here, and Soldier On here.
• Rallies planned to celebrate the end of Canada’s combat mission in Afghanistan. “Veterans’ advocates are planning rallies across Canada to mark the end of the Afghanistan combat mission. The main event will be held in Ontario’s Niagara region July 9, with a series of smaller rallies in other communities to welcome home and thank the troops. Organizer Michael Blais said various veterans’ associations, vets’ motorcycle clubs and American veterans’ groups will be invited to take part in a weekend of activities that will include entertainment and military-themed exhibits. He said the objective is to honour soldiers for their duty and sacrifice. “I think Canadians have done an outstanding job in Afghanistan under very adverse circumstances and we should, as a nation, stand up when our troops have fulfilled the mission,” he said ….”
• “Dismissed by the Canadian Forces, Robert Semrau begins the next stage of life—as a civilian.”
• Taliban Propaganda Watch: More attacks alleged on cops, convoys in Kandahar, Zabul.
• “A majority of Canadians see Arctic sovereignty as the country’s top foreign-policy priority and believe military resources should be shifted to the North from global conflicts, according to a new opinion poll. The survey also found that Canadians are generally far less receptive to negotiation and compromises on Arctic disputes than Americans. “That traditional notion of what is a Canadian is kind of challenged by this. We sound more like what people would say Americans would sound like dealing with international issues. That’s quite an eye-opener,” said Neil Desai, director of programs and communications at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto.  The findings are based on an Arctic-security poll of more than 9,000 people in the eight northern countries: Canada, the United States, Russia, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Iceland. The surveys were conducted by Ekos Research for the Munk School ….”
• F-35 Tug of War Latest:  Former Canadian generals say, “Canadians need to be able to see through the many misconceptions that surround the F-35 acquisition, which is a vital element in the securing of our nation’s future”
• “A federal decision on whether the U.S.-based manufacturer of Canada’s new fleet of navy helicopters will pay millions of dollars in fines for late delivery will be made next month. A spokeswoman for Public Works Minister Rona Ambrose says Sikorsky’s request for Ottawa to excuse the latest delay for delivery of the Cyclones has been formally refused. But the company has appealed the refusal and a senior civil servant will make the final call on whether it musst pay $45,000 per day for up to 120 days of delay. Sikorsky told the federal government on Nov. 22 that it wouldn’t meet its Nov. 30 deadline to begin delivering the early version of the fleet of maritime helicopters because of an issue “outside of its control.” Sikorsky did not elaborate at the time. Rebecca Thompson, Ambrose’s spokeswoman, says the director general of the Public Works and Government Services Department will decide on Sikorsky’s appeal in February. The federal government originally ordered 28 Cyclones in 2004 with a delivery date of November 2008, but there have been delays in the more than $5-billion contract on at least two previous occasions ….”
• Canada’s Defence Minister dropping by Winnipeg to make an Air Force announcement, “in support of the Air Force’s role in the defence of Canada.”
• Big suicide bombing at Moscow airport, in the area where folks were waiting for loved ones to get off planes (i.e., no security to go through) – here’s what Canada’s PM had to say about it:  “…. “The use of violence against innocent people must never be tolerated and we condemn those responsible for this horrible act. On behalf of our Government and people of Canada, I extend my deepest condolences to the Russian people and, in particular, the families and friends of those killed and injured in this tragedy. The international community faces an ongoing threat of terrorism and must remain vigilant as we work together with our allies to prevent future attacks. “While there are no known Canadian casualties at this time, our embassy in Moscow will continue to monitor the situation closely.”

MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 02 Jan 11

• First off, welcome back.  I hope you had a great holiday season, and that the coming year will be even better for you than the last.
• It appears Canadian troops being sent to train Afghan security forces will NOT necessarily be working out of Kabul (highlights mine). “The Canadian Forces is rushing to draw up a list of military trainers to send to Afghanistan once Canada’s combat mission ends next summer, but senior officers say training positions in the safer regions of the country are already growing few and far between. The federal government announced earlier this year that up to 950 Canadian soldiers would participate in a three-year mission to train the nascent Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police force. The Conservative government insisted that the Canadian trainers would be based “inside the wire,” working in secure bases in the relatively stable area around Kabul, the Afghan capital. But the NATO training organization in Afghanistan is expanding rapidly and needs trainers at sites across the country. Many of the training jobs in Kabul have been snapped up by nations who committed to the training mission much earlier and Canada may have to send its soldiers into riskier regions of the country. Maj.-Gen. Stuart Beare, the Canadian deputy commander of the NATO training mission, told CTV News that the coalition needs military and police trainers in almost every province of Afghanistan. “At the end of the day, the NATO requirements are for trainers across the whole of the country,” he said ….” You snooze ….
• I hope the Prime Minister Harper is correct, then, in this from a year-end interview:  “The risk to Canadian lives, relative to what we’ve had to this point, is relatively small.”
• How Canadian troops are dealing with personal politics among Afghan players in southern Afghanistan (1):  “An influential tribal leader with close ties to the Afghan president has returned to a key area of operations for Canadian troops in Kandahar. All eyes are now on the restive Panjwaii district, where a power struggle is already playing out. The re-emregence of Hajji Fazluddin Agha threatens to upset the balance of power there. Agha is one of Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s most important political allies in Kandahar. The fallout from the turf war between Agha and the current local leader, Hajji Baran, could have profound ramifications on NATO’s push into the horn-shaped hotbed of the insurgency ….” Another version of the same tension from Postmedia News here, with a bit of back story on the dude in question from Pakistani media here.
• How Canadian troops are dealing with personal politics among Afghan players in southern Afghanistan (2):  “He reportedly makes no apologies for killing his “enemies” on sight and has been instrumental in NATO’s attempt this fall to pacify Kandahar one brutal step at a time. There are those in Afghanistan who have labelled Col. Abdul Raziq a “butcher” in the past, and some have accused him of profiting from the burgeoning illegal drug trade. Yet others in the provincial government and western armies hail him as a hero who is helping to bring stability to a troubled land, with a series of lightning-style raids deep in Taliban enclaves …. He has been all over the war-wasted province this fall to the enthusiastic applause of American commanders who regard him as “tremendously respected among the Afghans” and “a great partner” for NATO. Knowing his history, Canadian officers are more circumspect. “He’s been extremely effective,” Brig.-Gen. Dean Milner, the commander of Canadian troops, said in a recent interview. “I think you always have a few concerns because he’s had some challenges in the past.” ….”
• “Afghan soldiers fire at Canadian convoy after Kandahar fender bender:  A small group of Afghan army soldiers shot at a Canadian convoy after a recent road accident outside Kandahar city, the military said Tuesday. The Afghan troops were manning a checkpoint near the Dand district centre, southwest of the city, on Boxing Day when a re-supply convoy struck one of their vehicles. The Canadians stopped to fill out paperwork and then started off down the road. But the Afghan soldiers didn’t want the Canadians to leave the scene and fired their weapons at the convoy and into the air. The Canadian military says none of its soldiers were injured, nor did they return fire ….” More here.
• More on the challenges of helping the Afghans. “In the nine months he worked as senior adviser to the chief of the Border Police, John Brewer relied on a local translator to navigate Afghan culture. Yet the Canadian Mountie spent as much time trying to interpret the actions of foreign forces to equally puzzled Afghans. Why, they asked him, did Germany provide their training base with drug-sniffing police dogs but not dog food or kennels? Why would the Americans build a brand new border police headquarters on land with no water? And what should be done with the thousands of donated European radios that do not operate on the same frequency as the Afghan ones? ….”
• First of Canada’s newest Hercs (CC-130J) now downrange. More on the plane here and here.
• Reportage odds-and-ends from Postmedia News’ Doug Schmidt.
• Former Captain Robert Semrau can now move on with his life. “The Canadian military will not appeal the sentence handed to former captain Robert Semrau in his unprecedented court martial. Semrau, 36, was demoted and dismissed from the military in September after being convicted of disgraceful conduct for shooting a severely wounded Taliban fighter on an Afghan battlefield. The military tribunal heard evidence suggesting the incident was an act of mercy intended to end the dying man’s suffering. Military prosecutors had asked for a two-year jail tern, but the judge in the case, Lt.-Col. Jean-Guy Perron, rejected that recommendation and imposed a more lenient sentence. The appellate counsel at the Canadian Military Prosecutions Service, Maj. Steven Richards, recently confirmed that the appeal period in the case has expired. The military, he said, did not appeal Semrau’s acquittal on more serious charges — second-degree murder and attempted murder — or his sentence. Semrau’s legal team also did not file a notice of appeal ….”
• It ain’t JUST the hurt you get during bad times, it’s also the hurt you get when the system doesn’t treat you well. “Secondary wounding is a significant issue in both the civilian and military communities.  Lt.-Col Rakesh Jetly (link to bio), a psychiatrist and senior mental health adviser with the Canadian Forces, said the condition is well-known within the trauma treatment world.  “Secondary wounding isn’t a diagnosable illness per se,” Jetly said. “It’s a component of another illness.”  Secondary wounding occurs when a traumatized individual, quite often suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), experiences further psychological harm at the hands of his or her support system or society at large …. Jetly said that while there are no exact numbers on who may be affected, the vast majority of people with PTSD at some point will feel that they have been secondarily wounded …. Secondary wounding is often caused by ignorance and a lack of understanding from people, organizations or institutions, Jetly said ….”
• Latest poochie story:  “Psychiatric dog program embraced by soldiers but in need of money – …. The use of psychiatric support dogs started in the United States and spread to Canada in the form of a handful of pilot projects. The Ottawa program was a six-month pilot project. The Wounded Warriors charity provided $35,000 in funding, but the money ran out in mid-December. “We fund programs that tend to injured [Canadian Forces] members,” Wounded Warriors founder Capt. Wayne Johnston says. “This one interested us.” But Johnston, who himself has post-traumatic stress disorder, says the organization “wants to see some real scientific results” before it provides more funding. “I don’t believe we would make that decision unless we would have some medical people there to monitor, properly monitor what is going on,” he said. O’Neill says it can cost $8,000 to $40,000 to fully train and certify a service animal, depending on how much work is required. Still, she’s optimistic the government will embrace the program and provide funding for it. “I believe that upon further review there’ll be no question that this is a necessity,” she said. The Canadian Forces says it is prepared to study the effects of psychiatric support dogs.”
• The Canadian Press has this summary of the deaths of several Reservists and a Canadian journalist in an IED blast in Afghanistan last year. One hopes this wasn’t done JUST because a journalist was killed – an “anniversary of Michelle Lang’s death” piece here from Postmedia News, for example.
• Entertainers aren’t JUST headed to Afghanistan to entertain the troops. “In early December, Edmonton comedian Paul Sveen embarked on a cross-Canada tour of military bases with rocker Sass Jordan and the band Paper Lions. The tour took them to Alert, on the northern tip of Ellesmere Island, the northernmost permanent settlement in the world ….”
• Military research paper:  Canada’s energy system needs better protection (via Army.ca)
• What’s Canada Buying (1):  Wanted: Someone to run/maintain Canadian Arctic underwater unmanned subs. More on the work required here (Statement of Work, PDF).  More background on Canada’s work mapping the Arctic floor here.
• What’s Canada Buying (2): Boeing doing some work on Canada’s CF-18’s.
• Note to Canadian Forces civilian staff:  watch out. “Canada’s military has 3,500 more civilian employees – 14 per cent – than it is supposed to, according to documents that say the critical overstaffing needs to be fixed through “zero growth” and attrition. “The civilian work force at DND is currently approximately 28,500 [full-time-equivalents], which exceeds the mandated target [of 25,000] and must be rigorously managed,” say Defence Department memos obtained by The Globe and Mail. The memos contemplate slowly rolling back some of the staffing levels added during the decade-long Afghanistan deployment, during which civilians were hired to support troops in Canada and in-theatre. The Canadian combat mission is to be scaled down in coming months, with a rump of troops staying behind to take on a new mission training Afghan security forces ….”

Court Martial Set for CF Officer Charged with Killing Injured Afghan

This from a CF media advisory:

General Court Martial proceedings will begin January 25, 2010, at the Asticou Centre in Gatineau, Québec, for Captain Robert Semrau in relation to the shooting death of a wounded insurgent that occurred in Afghanistan in October 2008.

Captain Semrau is currently serving as a staff officer with the 3rd Battalion, the Royal Canadian Regiment, at CFB Petawawa.  He shall be tried by a General Court Martial, which is composed of a Military Judge and a panel of five military members.  The military judge for this public hearing will be Colonel Mario Dutil.

Some background material:

The charge sheet (PDF)

Charge Laid Relating to Death of Presumed Insurgent (2 Jan 09 news release)

Custody hearing to take place for charged Canadian Forces member (5 Jan 09 media advisory)

Canadian Forces Officer to Face General Court Martial (18 Sept 09 news release)

Custody hearing transcript, 7 Jan 09

Canadian Officer Faces Court Martial in Death of Enemy Fighter

This, from a Canadian Forces news release:

“Captain Robert Semrau will face a General Court Martial in relation to the shooting death of a wounded insurgent that occurred in Afghanistan in October 2008.Capt. Semrau was arrested on December 31, 2008, by the National Investigation Service and charged with Second Degree Murder while deployed in Afghanistan as Commander of an Operational Mentor Liaison Team. Capt. Semrau was released under conditions on January 7, 2009, by the Military Judge presiding over the custody review hearing at CFB Petawawa.

Following referral to the Canadian Forces Director of Military Prosecutions (DMP), Captain (Navy) Holly MacDougall, the original charge of Second Degree Murder, and three additional charges were brought forward or “preferred” to Court Martial.

The charges facing Capt. Semrau are:

• Second Degree Murder – contrary to Section 130 of the National Defence Act, pursuant to Section 235(1) of the Criminal Code;

• Attempt to Commit Murder (alternative to the Charge of Second Degree Murder) – contrary to Section 130 of the National Defence Act, pursuant to Section 239(1)(a.1) of the Criminal Code;

• Behaving in a Disgraceful Manner – contrary to Section 93 of the National Defence Act; and
• Negligently Performing a Military Duty – contrary to Section 124 of the National Defence Act.

The charges have been forwarded to the Court Martial Administrator who will convene a General Court Martial at the first available date and at a location to be determined.

A General Court Martial is composed of a military judge and a panel of five members. The accused is represented by a defence counsel designated by the Director of Defence Counsel Service.

The DMP considers two main issues when deciding whether to prosecute a charge at court martial:

– Is the evidence sufficient to justify the continuation of charges as laid or the preferral of other charges?

– If the evidence is sufficient, does the public interest require a prosecution to be pursued?

DMP continually reassesses these issues as new information about the case becomes available and has the discretion to bring forward, or “prefer,” the charge or any other charge based on facts disclosed by evidence in addition to, or in substitution for, the charge.

The DMP is a separate and independent authority for military prosecutions who exercises prosecutorial discretion within the military justice system, free of influences, and based on legal principles and criteria….”

A fair bit of back and forth on Milnet.ca and Small Wars Council discussion threads.