January 24, 2006 [LINK]
Austin Bay remembers training with the Canadian Army during the "REFORGER" exercises in West Germany during the 1980s, and laments that its training level and equipment have been allowed to decline in recent years. He believes this has diminished Canada's international influence. Even though Paul Martin's Liberal government was sharply critical of the Bush administration, about one thousand Canadian troops remain deployed in Afghanistan. One Canadian civilian was killed and three soldiers were wounded in a suicide bomb attack in Kandahar last week. Among the various contingents stationed at trouble spots around the world are 190 Canadian troops in the Golan Heights, keeping peace between Israel and Syria. See Canada's Department of National Defense.