Since NATO classified this operation as a peacekeeping mission then Canada as part of that force is acting in the role of a peacekeeping country.
Why then is Canada launching offensives on a peacekeeping mission? Because the role of peacekeeping has changed. Since the Balkans and Rwanda, peacekeeping forces have taken to being pre-emptive to prevent violence. Why sit back and allow another Srebrenica(sp?) to occur?
You may look at the countries currently in Afghanistan and see that U.S, British, and Canadian forces are the only ones in active conflict with the 'enemy'(a term I'm using loosely as a lack of a better term. FYI you can't call someone who's fighting in their own country an insurgent!!), but Canada did not enter this mission until the majority of U.S. led offensives were over, and the Taliban had been removed from power.

JTF 2 operators were involved, but that does not mean Canada as a country was interested in the initial offensive. Many times units like this are involved in operations that you do not hear about.

EDIT: What I mean is that, special ops units such as JTF 2 can be commisioned to help another country in their own seperate activities. Sometimes countries fork out hard cash or trade incentives or do it as a sign of goodwill in order to use another country's special soldiers. For example, Columbia enlisted the help of the Green Berets to aid in the drug wars in the 80s.

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UWO '12 Social Science

This statement alone shows you have no idea what the difference between peacekeeping and war actually is. And until you figure that out, I don't think there's much point engaging further with you on this topic.

on a chapter 6 mandate soldiers can only fire in self defense. they cannot target or initiate confrontation. they cannot mount offensives., etc. etc.

Yes, we do have a national identity.
Wikipedia is the 1337.357 source of info,
and the longest sniper kill that was set by a Canadian soldier is sick and proves that we are not only competent,
but world leaders in military combat (although not to a very large scale).

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UTSG Life Science 12'

Some people have said if Canada had the budget and size of the U.S. Army combined with the Canadian training, the Canadian Forces would be unstoppable in taking over the world.

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Carleton University Class of 2012, Honours Bachelor of Arts

First of why are we using Wikipedia for our source of evidence? Secondly Canada did not go to war or invade Afghanistan.


They are Canadians, but working under the guidlenes of the host country. Canada is not setting the additional Rules of Engagement which is done on a case by case basis, because they are not involved. These are Canadian soldiers working under AMERICAN guidelines. Think of them as heavily armed foreign exchange students. They are citizens of the country where they come from, and fly the flag of their country, but follow the rules of their host. Allowing soldiers on exchange to enter combat or operations of the host country is not uncommon.


JTF 2 was in Afghanistan with the Americans yes, but like I pointed out in a previous post, it is not uncommon for countries to loan out their special ops units to other countries. If it was the average infantry division out of Petawawa or something I could see your point, but this is a different type of unit.
Like I showed in my example earlier, Green Berets were training and fighting alongside Columbian soldiers in the 80s in efforts to shut down the cartels.


The Canadian team was an element of JTF 2.

As for the other quotes where I am assuming you are trying to show that Canadians are on the offensive, I have mentioned before, peacekeeping mandate and ROE is slowly changing to allow peacekeepers to be proactive rather than reactive. Many unfortunate lessons were learnt in the peacekeeping world following the missions in Rwanda, the Balkans especially the Srebrenica Valley incident, and to a lesser extent Somalia (yes, that started out as a peacekeeping mission, UNOSOM I & II go look it up). The situation in Afghanistan is that the enemy has been identified as the Taliban, whereas in those other instances the peacekeepers were dealing with groups versus groups so to side with one would jeopardize the mission.

EDIT: D.Dickins is starting to seem like he's buying into the government too much, and I do not agree with some of what he says.

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UWO '12 Social Science

I never said that what the U.S. did was or was not an act of war, but Canada's role in Afghanistan is peacekeeping. The majority of Canadian forces there did not arrive after the invasion was over, and those that were there were under the guidance of the Americans NOT Canada.

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UWO '12 Social Science

Are you having trouble following what I have said? What is peacekeeping to you? Going into a country saying "Play Nice", and hoping everything goes right?

They are weeding out those that are threats to the peace that they are trying to keep. This is the first time that a peacekeeping mission has taken an offensive stance, but at the same time it was something that was in the works since Somalia. Peacekeeping so far has failed because guidelines have prevented peacekeepers from acting to prevent violence. I am sure that after NATO clears out, whether or not this was considered a success, it will definitely be a precedent for future peacekeeping attempts.

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UWO '12 Social Science

What evidence? The few articles from Wikipedia? That's hardly evidence. Take a look at reliable sources of information from the UN, Canadian Forces reports, or sites from the Department of National Defence.



Peace was maintained by taking the Taliban out of the area. Now, their community will be rebuilt and they'll be able to lead fairly normal lives once the mission is complete.



Oh man ... Have you forgotten about those small explosions (sarcasm) on September 11, 2001? You know, the greatest terrorist attack to happen on American soil? Almost 3,000 people died, but you have no recollection whatsoever? Since you like Wikipedia so much, take a look here.

The war was started the second those planes were hijacked and flown into the buildings for no other reason than to make a shallow demonstration of their power. They declared war on the United States and the Western civilization, the U.S. simply reacted against Afghanistan, which is where the hijackers originated from. Six months later, Canada was called in to assist the new Afghani government in establishing itself, setting up elections, and rebuilding the communities.

You're welcome, by the way. 82 of our best soldiers have died to protect ungrateful people like you, and yet the authority you've been given to make such accusations is upheld by the same soldiers you're badmouthing.

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Carleton University Class of 2012, Honours Bachelor of Arts

You're hopeless. Was Canada peacekeeping when they helped removed the Nazi regime? After all, the Nazi regime was responsible for millions of deaths. Canada was just "peacekeeping" though, right?

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-Stringer