KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, March 13 (UPI) -- Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, on a surprise visit to Afghanistan, promised Monday to continue Canada's mission there.
Harper visited the air base in Kandahar and addressed 1,000 of the Canadian soldiers stationed there. He promised to hold the line against "doubters" at home, the Toronto Star reported.
"It's never easy particularly for the men and women on the front lines," Harper said. "And there may be some who want to cut and run. But cutting and running is not your way. It's not my way and it's not the Canadian way."
Harper won a narrow victory in the recent Canadian elections. His Conservative Party holds the largest number of parliamentary seats without an actual majority.
On Tuesday, Harper is scheduled to travel to Kabul for a meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
Asked what struck him most at the desolate Kandahar base, Harper said he was amazed by the complexity of the mission and its sophistication. Canada stayed out of the Vietnam War and the invasion of Iraq, and Harper described Afghanistan as the country's "most challenging" overseas mission since Korea.
