OTTAWA - Almost 90 per cent of Canadians want their troops out of Afghanistan by the scheduled end date in 2011 or before, despite new American commitments to the conflict, a new poll suggests.
Forty per cent of those surveyed in The Canadian Press Harris-Decima poll said the troops should be brought back early, while 46 per cent said they should be withdrawn in July 2011 as approved by Parliament.
Eight per cent of respondents said Canada should extend its mission in Afghanistan.
"It has been the case for some time that many Canadians have expressed unease about the mission in Afghanistan," said Jeff Walker, Harris-Decima's senior vice-president.
"In spite of the fact that (U.S. President) Barack Obama is actively making efforts to try to advance the U.S. effort in Afghanistan, 40 per cent of Canadians would still like troops not only to come home but to come home early."
A plurality in all regions said Canada should stick to its 2011 commitment, with the exception of Quebec, where 51 per cent of respondents said Canada should withdraw early.
A majority of Conservatives and Liberals surveyed said the troops should stay on until 2011, while a plurality of Green and New Democrats -- and more than two in three BQ supporters -- said they should be brought back early.
Overall, 54 per cent opposed the government's commitment to have troops in Afghanistan, while 39 per cent support it. Opposition to Canada's presence in Afghanistan was highest in Quebec, at 73 per cent.
"I think people are increasingly of a mind to say this is an intractable situation that will just continue to be a quagmire for a long period of time, and they're concerned that more Canadians are going to die in the meantime," Walker said.
"I really think it's mostly that. I don't think it's an issue of the government not being able to sell it, necessarily."
The survey also suggests Canadians are not convinced that Obama's decision to deploy more troops will be an effective counterweight to the insurgency.
Overall, only 41 per cent of respondents said the new troops will succeed, with 54 per cent disagreeing. Resistance was particularly high in Quebec, where 64 per cent said the U.S. deployment would not be effective.
The survey of 683 Canadians was conducted May 1-3 and has a margin of error of 3.7 percentage points, 19 times in 20.
