Canada plans to extend Afghan mission to 2009: report

OTTAWA (Reuters) – The new Canadian government plans to
extend the country’s 2,300-soldier mission in Afghanistan by
two years to 2009, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. and
opposition politicians said on Monday.

They said Parliament would hold a six-hour debate on the
matter starting at 3 p.m. (1900 GMT) on Wednesday and then hold
a vote. When contacted by Reuters, the chief spokeswoman for
Prime Minister Stephen Harper declined to comment.