Canada's ruling Conservatives and major opposition Liberals showed signs of compromise Tuesday on the country's military mission in Afghanistan, raising the hope of avoiding an election which may be triggered by the issue.
The government wants to extend the combat mission of the country's 2,500 troops by two years when it expires early next year. It tabled last week a confidence motion on the issue, which will cause the minority government to fall if defeated.
The Liberals, which have insisted the troops shift from combat to reconstruction after the current mission expires in February 2009, said Tuesday it would allow the troops to get involved in combat if it meant protecting reconstruction efforts.
Liberal leader Stephane Dion disclosed an amendment to the government motion, saying he preferred not to have the mission in Afghanistan serve as an election trigger.
"Without compromising our principles, the wording of the motion has been carefully chosen to maximize the possibility of an agreement for the sake of Canada, Afghanistan and the mission," Dion said at a press conference in parliament.
But Dion suggested that the military mission must end by July 2011, while stressing the need for Canadians to shift to reconstruction before that.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper reacted to Dion's statement by calling the Liberal amendment a "positive development" that is "moving the debate in the right direction" on Afghanistan.
Harper said he will consider tabling a new motion to extend Canada's mission in Afghanistan until 2011 that could include elements from the Liberals' proposed amendment. "The government's objective is to see common ground here so we will look at these in great detail," he told reporters.
Meanwhile, government House leader Peter Van Loan changed his tone Tuesday and said the government is willing to let the mission be completed by 2011. The Conservatives have said in the motion it would review the mission in 2011.
"I think there is an awful lot of common ground there ... our objective is quite clear, to have this mission completed by 2011,"he told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Source: Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article