Afghan mission not deterred, recruitment to be sped up: Hillier

The deaths of seven Canadian soldiers since the beginning of August are unthinkably tragic, but will not deter Canada's mission in Afghanistan, the country's top soldier said Tuesday.

"We know that risk is not reduced to zero," said Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Rick Hillier, speaking in St. John's.

"We've seen the results of that, particularly over these last two weeks."

Hillier attended a solemn ceremony in Trenton, Ont., Monday as the body of Cpl. Andrew Eykelenboom, 23, was repatriated.

Speaking to delegates to a conference of the Canadian Bar Association, Hillier said the deaths of Canadians will not prompt Canada to alter its course.

"I tell you, we are soldiers. This is our profession. This is what we do," Hillier said.

"We are in a just mission, protecting the weak and vulnerable and trying to bring enough stability and security to Afghanistan to accelerate the rebuilding and reconstruction, which— of course— is what the Taliban fear."

Hillier admitted, though, that such strong sentiments only go so far when he travels to Trenton to witness the return of fallen soldiers.

"You know, all of that— when you meet grieving parents or a young widow with young children— is actually not a great deal of comfort when you're talking to them," he said.

"But, you know what? I go to Trenton to show my respect and show my gratitude to those great young soldiers and their families, maybe trying to help inspire the families to get through the toughest days of their lives," Hillier said. "I always leave Trenton inspired by them."

About 2,200 Canadians are serving in Afghanistan, with most based in Kandahar. Since 2002, 26 Canadian soldiers and one diplomat have died in Afghanistan.

Targeting recruitment delays

Hillier also said that enlistment of recruits will be accelerated this fall, with the goal to substantially increase the percentage of recruits who complete the hiring process within a month.

"We've thrown, if you will, a transformational grenade in the middle of our recruiting process," Hillier said.

"[In] a 15-minute conversational interview, you can pretty much make a judgment whether this is a winner— a swimmer or a non-swimmer."

Two separate reports this year have highlighted the challenges the Armed Forces faces in meeting recruitment targets. In May, Auditor General Sheila Fraser outlined several technical shortfalls as well as the challenges faced by shifting demographics.

In a report released last month, military ombudsman Yves Côté said more timely, service-friendly recruiting needed implementation at all stages of the process in order to both meet target numbers and prevent applicants from being deterred.

Hillier acknowledged that the Canadian military has lost out on qualified recruits in the past.

"Medicals, security clearances, fitness tests and a variety of things like that were taking months and months and months," he said. "As a result, we were losing good kids."

In February, Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor announced the government's commitment to increase the size of the regular force by 15,000 members to 75,000 and augment the reserve force by 10,000 personnel.