MONTREAL - Afghanistan's ambassador to Canada is hopeful the Canadian deployment to his country will have accomplished its mission in about three years time.
And Canadian troops remaining at their posts in southern Afghanistan until 2011 will buy that country the time it needs to bring about a significant change in security.
"We feel more confident that our army and police and other institutions are developing according to plan,'' Omar Samad told The Canadian Press on Wednesday.
"They will shoulder a large portion of the security burden over time as they already are,'' he said following a speech to the Montreal chapter of the Canadian International Council.
Samad says that with security will come an increased effort to address the questions of governance, corruption and development.
"In the next year or two, you're going to see some significant changes in all of those areas,'' Samad said. "I remain optimistic in the next two to three years, we're going to have a more secure Afghanistan.''
Samad says the more stability that can be brought to Afghanistan, the less need there will be for NATO troops on the ground.
But there is still hard work ahead, Samad warned.
Troop deployment to Afghanistan is among the topics to be discussed next week at a NATO summit in Bucharest, Romania.
The House of Commons voted this month to extend Canada's mission in Kandahar province until 2011.
That is conditional on NATO sending 1,000 more troops and additional equipment to back them up.
The U.S. and several European countries have indicated they will step up.
"Everyone feels confident that the right decisions will be made and the mission will be strengthened to help us accomplish our objectives,'' Samad said.
Canada has been at the forefront of fighting against the Taliban in southern Afghanistan.
Since the mission began in 2002, 81 soldiers and one diplomat have died.
Samad says what happens post 2011 is dependent upon how much is accomplished now.
"What happens beyond that will depend on the circumstances then, and I cannot predict what those circumstances will be,'' Samad said.
Samad said Canada and other foreign partners cannot give up on Afghanistan now. History has already shown what can happen when Afghanistan is forgotten.
"When you have attained a goal through military means, then you have to step in and you have to rebuild,'' he said. "Otherwise, you're creating a worse mess and a worse situation.
"You're creating a power vacuum and who knows who will fill that void.''
