Media Advisory
Wainwright, Alberta — Some 2,500 soldiers, who will be the next group of Canadian troops to deploy to Afghanistan, have just completed a very important phase in their training this week at Base Wainwright, Alberta.
The soldiers, who come primarily from Base Valcartier, Quebec, participated in complex military manoeuvres during Exercise Maple Guardian, an activity focused on individual and collective training for the Joint Task Force scheduled for deployment to Afghanistan this Summer.
The soldiers will be tasked to aid Afghan authorities in restoring the security and stability within Afghanistan, a nation on the verge of recovering from decades of warfare and strife. According to Joint Task Force Commander, Brigadier-General Guy Laroche, “Our soldiers have received an excellent training. The exercise, which we just completed, represents the last step in a long road, whose aim was to provide the soldiers with the technical, cultural and intellectual skills necessary to successfully accomplish, with the least possible risk, this very important mission,” he said. “The exercise provided us with the confirmation that we are ready, and I am convinced that we will brilliantly fulfil this mandate, confided in us by the Canadian public, to help better the lives of the Afghan people,” he added.
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Notes to News Directors/ Assignment Editors :
The Joint Task Force personnel just concluded a short ceremony in Wainwright for celebrating the completion of the intense training of the last months. Imagery will be available around 20:00 PM Eastern Time at the following link:
http://www.combatcamera.forces.gc.ca/common/combatcamera/news/.
Brigadier-General Laroche is also available for short telephone interviews to comment the footage provided. For more information or interviews, contact Capt Eric Chamberland, Public Affairs Officer, at (418) 933-7859.
