Debates of Sept. 26th, 2023

Foreign Affairs and International Development

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Madam Speaker, the member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan never complains about doing it. Is it a coincidence that concurrence motions on reports are never moved during Conservative opposition days, but always when dealing with government legislation?

When the Conservatives use this tactic, and they have done it many times before, it is always meant to prevent debate on the government agenda, because there are other opportunities to debate these types of important issues. If the Conservatives were very serious about the issue of the concurrence motion that they are moving, there are other ways of doing it. They know that, but they like to use the concurrence motion in order to frustrate government legislation.

Bill C-56 is too important for Canadians. We will get it through, no matter what kinds of games they play, because it is important to Canadians.

[Dave Epp, Conservative, Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON]

Madam Speaker, I have the honour to sit on the foreign affairs and international development committee. I did listen to the testimony about the blockade of the Lachin corridor, and I am following the developments with the invasion now by Azerbaijan into Nagorno-Karabakh. So, to hear members across the way equate the suffering of Canadians, which no doubt they have inflicted, as a dismissive tool, where they have no respect for the institutions of the House, is very concerning.

I am going to ask the member, as he dismissed my colleague's motion and as he spoke: Was it his intent to equate the suffering that Canadians are having right now on the basis of this government's policies with those fleeing for this lives from Nagorno-Karabakh?

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Madam Speaker, on international issues of that nature, or what we have seen take place in terms of Russia's aggression, we have opportunities to have healthy debates where we can build consensus. The Conservative Party has chosen to try to divide even the House of Commons, parliamentarians, on those critically important issues.

It is not to say that the issue of this motion is not important to Canadians; it is, but timing is everything. This motion has been sitting now since February. The Conservatives intentionally brought it up at government business in order to prevent us from talking about the issues of inflation, interest rates and housing. That, too, is important.

The Conservative Party is not listening to what Canadians have to say. They are bringing forward this motion—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

One last question from the hon. member for Saanich—Gulf Islands.

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Madam Speaker, given my earlier intervention to the hon. member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, I also agree with much of what the parliamentary secretary to the House leader just said. I do not doubt for one minute that the motivation of the Conservative back rooms is to hijack debate this morning. That does not take anything away from my earlier comment that this is an important matter that the House should occupy its time with, but I share the frustration of the hon. member that we see these kinds of shenanigans. I wish everyone could rise above them so that we could actually work together more.

I have no reason to defend Conservatives. They have blocked my right to speak on routine matters, such as paying tribute to the late Monique Bégin, our former and courageous—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

I have to give the hon. parliamentary secretary a few seconds to comment.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Madam Speaker, the leader of the Green Party brings up some valid points in regards to issues of international affairs and where they can be best done, like take-note debates, emergency debates and opposition day debates. When parties work together to—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. member for Montarville.

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Madam Speaker, I cannot say how surprised I am, to say the least, that we are addressing this issue today—not that I do not consider it important, on the contrary. My office and the office of my colleague from Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan held discussions prior to the first meeting of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development so that we could again bring up the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, given the events of recent days and weeks. There was then an agreement.

Yesterday, during the very first meeting of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, I did say that we wanted to revisit this issue, since we have an open study, so to speak, on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan and recent events require us to look at this issue again. We therefore had discussions with our Conservative colleagues about this.

Suddenly, this morning, without warning, the Conservatives moved this motion to adopt the 11th report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. Not that I do not think this report should be adopted or that this is an important issue. It is a matter of the utmost urgency, and I will come back to this in a moment.

There was, however, a distinct lack of co-operation on the part of our Conservative colleagues, a lack of consultation and communication, even though our offices had been in contact for several weeks about the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. As a result, I can only conclude that this is a delaying tactic that has nothing to do with the substance of the issue. This is a parliamentary guerrilla tactic to prevent the government from passing its inflation bill.

At the same, I must say that I disagree with the Liberal Party’s Parliamentary Secretary to the Government House Leader when he says that the inflation issue is more important in the calculations or in the ranking of important matters. I know that our constituents are living with the daily consequences of inflation and the housing shortage and that it is vitally important that we address this issue. Moreover, we were scheduled to discuss this, as part of the study of Bill C-56.

However, right now, there are people losing their lives in Nagorno-Karabakh and the international community is showing little or no concern. There are only a few countries, including France, in particular, that really seem to care about what is happening in that region.

Azerbaijan claims that Nagorno-Karabakh is part of its territory. International law seems to confirm the Azerbaijani claim. However, if it is true that the people of Nagorno-Karabakh are part of Azerbaijan, how can we tolerate, under the principle of the duty and responsibility to protect—a concept that was adopted by the United Nations at Canada’s instigation—a government literally starving and attacking a population in its territory? That, however, is what is happening.

For several months, after the 2020 conflict, the government claimed that it wanted to adopt a balanced position, stating that it did not know what was really happening on the ground. It said that it did not really know who the attacker was and who was in the wrong.

However, since then, the facts keep pointing at Azerbaijan.

There was a reluctant statement from Global Affairs Canada, which we actually reiterated in the report, that simply called on Azerbaijan to live up to its commitment under the peace agreement that it reached with Armenia after the 2020 conflict under Russian auspices. This statement called on Azerbaijan to live up to its commitment to keep the Lachin Corridor open and call on it to respect the terms of the ceasefire.

Aside from this half-hearted statement, not much has been done by the Canadian government. Of course, a special rapporteur was sent, and none other than Stéphane Dion, Canada’s ambassador plenipotentiary, who is the right fit for all purposes and missions. He was sent to Armenia to support Armenian democracy. Some recommendations were taken from his report, including the recommendation to open an embassy in Yerevan, a commitment made by the Prime Minister several years ago that is finally being implemented. How can we accept that Azerbaijan has, on several occasions, not only violated the ceasefire agreement reached with Armenia in 2020, but also blatantly crossed into Armenia’s sovereign territory?

In the House, since February 2022, we have stood in solidarity in our determination to denounce Russia’s illegal and unprovoked aggression against Ukraine. Several countries around the world look at Canada and its claims to defend international law, human rights and the rule of law, and then wonder about how we seem to apply things differently based on the situation. Palestine has been living under occupation since 1967 to near total indifference. Armenia has been subjected to military attacks by Azerbaijan to near total indifference. The Canadian government is determined, and we completely support it, to defend Ukraine against Russian aggression. Why then the double standard? Why not be just as firm about Azerbaijan’s aggression against Armenia as we have been and still are about Russia's aggression against Ukraine?

Azerbaijan violated the peace agreements once again by launching a military offensive in the Nagorno-Karabakh region on September 19. People are fleeing by the hundreds, fearing repression. Indeed, there have been disturbing reports about how the Azeri troops are treating the civilian population. There are reports of summary executions and discrimination against Armenian populations. For months now, the people of Nagorno-Karabakh have been suffering the effects of the blockade, which Azerbaijan initially tried to deny so as not to be accused of violating the terms of the ceasefire agreement signed with Armenia in 2020.

Azerbaijan is a rather authoritarian state that rarely tolerates protests. However, it did tolerate a months-long protest by so-called environmentalists who blocked the Lachin corridor under the pretext of wanting to prevent mining developments in Nagorno-Karabakh. The fact of the matter is that Azerbaijan's main fear was that mining resources would flow from Nagorno-Karabakh into Armenia. Under the pretext of preventing mining development for supposedly environmental reasons, these activists were therefore tolerated in the Lachin corridor for months.

In January of this year, I brought this serious situation before the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. In the wake of the blockade of the Lachin corridor, we conducted a study on this specific situation at the request of the Bloc Québécois. That study eventually led to this report, which is quite brief. As I was saying, it essentially repeats the wording of the Canadian declaration. I felt that the Liberals wanted to soft-pedal, that they were not too eager to adopt a report. I told them that it was the Global Affairs Canada statement repeated verbatim and that they could not be against that.

One thing led to another and they ended up accepting. However, I get the impression that as a result of Azerbaijan lobbying certain Liberal MPs, they were reluctant to take a position, much like the government. The report says:

That the committee report to the House that it calls on the Azerbaijani authorities, in accordance with its obligations as a party to the trilateral declaration of November 9, 2020, and following the appeal made by the Government of Canada on December 14, 2022, to reopen the Lachin Corridor and guarantee freedom of movement in order to avoid any deterioration in the humanitarian situation, and that, pursuant to Standing Order 109, the Government table a comprehensive response to the report.

The response came. On June 14, the Minister of Foreign Affairs sent us a two-page response that was interesting but contained many of the same soothing statements that the government has been offering up for months concerning the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. It said that the government was following developments closely, that it was monitoring the situation every day, that it was urging Azerbaijan to open the corridor, and so on. Meanwhile, in violation of the terms of the ceasefire agreement, Azerbaijan repeatedly resumed hostilities, including against Armenia. This development met with, as I have said, near total indifference.

Azerbaijan eventually realized that the truth about the corridor supposedly being blockaded by eco-activists was coming out. Public protests are not permitted in Azerbaijan, except in the Lachin corridor, curiously enough. The Azerbaijan government realized that no one was buying its story, so it decided to just set up a military roadblock, right under the noses of the so-called Russian peacekeepers. The ceasefire agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia in 2020 was brokered by Russia, which was supposed to guarantee that the ceasefire stayed in place by having troops on the ground. Who knows why Russia's attention seems to be elsewhere, but the Russian peacekeepers barely fulfilled their role. I would go so far as to say they did not fulfill it at all.

In fact, they were even used by Azerbaijan to carry out attacks not only against Nagorno-Karabakh, but also against Armenia itself. The same aggressor that we are denouncing in the war in Ukraine is abetting Azerbaijan in attacking another independent nation, the only democracy in the Caucasus region, where we have committed to defending democracy, yet we are doing nothing. We are letting it happen.

Canada makes soothing comments that it is monitoring the situation very closely, that it is paying attention to what is going on, that it is urging Azerbaijan to reopen the corridor, but this is no longer about reopening the Lachin corridor. The territory of Nagorno-Karabakh has been occupied by the Azerbaijani military. Its population, which has been starving and deprived of all basic medical supplies for months, is now under military occupation by Azerbaijan, which is committing atrocities against the civilian population. Again, this news has been met with near total indifference.

Words cannot express how disappointed I am with the Liberal government's attitude toward this conflict. For months, it suggested that we could not be sure which nation was the aggressor was in this case. What will it take for the Liberal government to understand that Azerbaijan is the aggressor, that the fact that Nagorno-Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan under international law cannot justify military aggression against innocent civilians and cannot justify a nation literally starving its population? In another context, that would be called genocide. This is a very serious issue.

I certainly do not want to downplay the importance of the debate we are having on the adoption of the 11th report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. However, I cannot help but wonder once again if this is the time to discuss it. I know our Conservative colleagues are genuinely and deeply concerned about the situation because, as I stated earlier, we have had discussions. Our offices have had discussions about the fact that we wanted to raise this issue again in the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. Since our offices have been in contact, why are we being surprised this morning by this motion to adopt the report? Why were we not consulted? Why were we not even informed?

This morning, I was coming out of another committee when I was told I had to speak. Why proceed this way on such an important issue that should see us all working together?

What we are seeing, unfortunately, is a political move by our Conservative friends to derail and delay debate on the inflation bill. I come back to the comments by the parliamentary secretary to the government House leader. I am not saying that the issue is more important than what is happening in Nagorno‑Karabakh, because people are dying right now in Nagorno‑Karabakh, but our fellow Canadians in every riding are dealing with the problem of inflation. Our fellow Canadians in every riding are dealing with the problem of a housing shortage.

Our Conservative colleagues rise every day in the House and say that the current inflation is unacceptable, but they come here today with this delaying tactic. Someone would have called them whited sepulchres.

We saw yesterday how hypocritical our colleagues can be, and I use that word carefully. When it was proposed that the passages in which the veteran of the Waffen-SS was in our gallery, and even the related video excerpts, be removed from the record of the debates, they refused. My Conservative colleagues need to show some honesty. If they are as interested in the issue of Nagorno‑Karabakh as they claim, they should not proceed as they did this morning.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague. I know him as someone who deeply cares about the Armenian people and the conflict in the region. He has brought this forward at the foreign affairs committee many times.

Like him, I am disappointed in how this concurrence debate has come forward. I find it very interesting, because we had a debate just last week on interference and the Indian government's interference in our democracy, the potential of the Indian government to perhaps have murdered a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil, and yet the Conservatives did not show up at all. In fact, the member who brought this concurrence motion forward sat in the House of Commons and said not one word during that entire four-hour debate.

Could the member talk about why, when it comes to actual, meaningful action on things that we should be doing with regard to our foreign policies, the Conservatives politicize it, every time?

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

Before I allow the hon. member to answer the question, I would like to remind members that we do not refer to absences or presences in the House.

The hon. member for Montarville.

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Madam Speaker, I keep saying that if there is one committee that has been one of the least partisan in the House, and that should stay that way, it is the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. There are at least two very good reasons for that.

First, with the possible exception of the brief episode of the Harper government, all of the governments that have led Canada since the end of the Second World War, whether Liberal or Conservative, have essentially upheld very similar values on the international stage. On international issues, the Bloc Québécois, the NDP and, in a way, even the Conservatives are quite similar to the Liberals in terms of the values they uphold internationally. That should make this committee one of the least partisan committees.

Second, I think that it is always better for us to present a united front internationally, even though we may have our differences, than to show that we are divided. However, what we have seen over the last few months is the Conservatives trying to politicize foreign affairs issues, which is extremely harmful. I also do not understand why the Conservatives did not intervene in last Tuesday's debate on Indian interference, which is probably one of the most shocking issues we have faced in recent years. Maybe it is because Stephen Harper once called Prime Minister Modi a significant international leader, and the former prime minister's description has painted the Conservatives into a corner.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Madam Speaker, I did get an opportunity to express my frustration in terms of why we are debating this today, but that does not take away, as the member pointed out, from the importance of the issue.

I want to reference a comment that came from Bob Rae, who is Canada's ambassador to the United Nations, as I am sure my friend is aware. He said that Azerbaijan might be undertaking “ethnic cleansing”. For me, whenever we talk about international issues, there are some values that Canadians hold so high, in terms of the level of importance. The people we represent are simply abhorred by the thought of things like ethnic cleansing and those types of allegations.

Could the member provide any thoughts, given his role in Parliament, sitting on the foreign affairs committee?

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Madam Speaker, in my previous response, I already mentioned how I think the political parties ought to approach foreign affairs. If the ambassador, Canada's representative to the United Nations, has finally admitted that what is happening in Nagorno-Karabakh may be ethnic cleansing, so much the better. It was about time. Unfortunately, I am afraid it is too little, too late at this stage.

[Denis Trudel, Bloc, Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, QC]

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his excellent speech. He explained the situation in a very clear, straightforward and informative way. I agree with him.

I cannot get over the fact that we are discussing this motion this morning. We have been hearing the Conservatives complain about inflation since Parliament resumed. The situation is very serious. We were supposed to talk about housing this morning. I cannot get over the fact that this motion is currently before the House and that we have wasted three hours of debate.

We have not really wasted three hours, of course, because this is an important motion, as members have mentioned. However, the housing situation in Canada is a very serious issue, so why are we not discussing it right now? That should be our priority, as should inflation.

To come back to the motion, my colleague said that he was disappointed with the Liberal government's response. What could the government do to counter the Azerbaijan government's attack on the Armenian populations in Nagorno-Karabakh?

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Madam Speaker, the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development is in the process of studying Canada's sanctions regime. That regime has its faults. In many cases, we are unable to monitor the sanctions that were imposed. We do not know if they are effective. We do not know their extent or what type of goods are being seized.

One witness told us yesterday that this is an effective measure for putting pressure on foreign governments. Why is the government not sanctioning Azerbaijan for its unacceptable behaviour, which has been going on for months, not only against Armenia, but also against its civilian population in Nagorno-Karabakh? When is it going to loudly and clearly denounce Azerbaijan's actions in Nagorno-Karabakh?

From the beginning, the government has always made half-hearted insinuations. Now we are hearing about a statement by Bob Rae that this may possibly be “ethnic cleansing”. It was about time, but the government needs to go further. It must not just say what is happening, it must denounce it and take action to condemn Azerbaijan, especially since Azerbaijan is probably helping Russia slip Russian oil into Europe right now.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Speaker, this is a very important debate that we are undertaking here today. A very serious situation is unfolding in the region. I am happy to speak in this debate today, but I want to start by taking a moment to say that, as many have said before me in this place, this is not how we should be engaging with this topic.

I was informed about an hour ago that this debate was going to be happening. That does not give members of Parliament the time to prepare to present on something as important and as vital as this issue. This issue is so important that I and the member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie wrote a letter to the Minister of Foreign Affairs last week asking for more action to be taken on this.

I want to make it extraordinarily clear that the humanitarian crisis that is unfolding, the risk to Armenians, the tens of thousands of Armenians who are fleeing for their lives and their safety right now, demands attention from Canada and a response from the government, but a debate like this, which was brought forward by the member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, is the wrong way to do this.

I will say as well that this is the same member from whom we have heard nothing with regard to foreign interference by India. On the potential of a Canadian citizen being murdered on Canadian soil, we have heard nothing from the member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan. This is the same member who, during his speech, spoke about Canada selling arms to Turkey, but at no point has he ever mentioned the fact that Canada continues to sell arms to Saudi Arabia. At no point has he said that we are not adhering to the Arms Trade Treaty. This picking and choosing when he brings things forward is disingenuous. To politicize something as serious as what has happened in the Nagorno-Karabakh is almost criminal, to be honest.

We are very worried about what is happening. In fact, the NDP asked for the government to put sanctions in place against the Azerbaijanis who are responsible for this humanitarian crisis. We have asked the government to sanction those individuals who have started this offensive increase in terror in the region, and the reason for that is that we saw last week that over 200 civilians were murdered. We have now seen tens of thousands of people fleeing the region, after months and months of conflict within the Lachin corridor. The challenges in this region are extraordinary, and the need for Canada to step up and step into that place is also extraordinary.

We know that in Brussels today, peace talks are under way. Canada has a role to play there as well. We do not occupy a large source of influence in that region. It is important for us to recognize that. However, I would say that we do have the ability to have a voice. We do have the ability to work with our allies. One of the things we can do is impose sanctions on those who are responsible for this violence.

I have stood in this place many times and criticized the government on our sanctions regime. I do not think our regime is as strong as it could be. We are good at putting people on the sanctions list, but we are not necessarily good at following through and enforcing those sanctions. I do think this is one of those opportunities where Canada could step up. This is one of those opportunities where we could improve our sanctions regime and the way we deal with bad actors.

Canada has a long history of speaking out for human rights on the world stage, for speaking up for justice, for speaking up for the rights of others, and while that role has diminished over the last decade, the last 10 to 15 years, we can take that role again. We can take that on. We have a new ambassador in Armenia. I know this will be a very difficult job for him. He has testified at the foreign affairs committee, so I know that he is well informed and able to contribute to this important work.

At this moment, when there is ethnic cleansing happening, when the Armenian people are suffering, when people are being forced from their homes because of their fears for their own safety, it is an opportunity for Canada to step forward and do what we can.

The NDP has asked for sanctions and development assistance. We should be committing to helping those Armenians who are fleeing from their homes.

We should be committing to increasing our official development assistance, ODA. This is a government that cut ODA by 15% in the last budget. That is not playing the role on the world stage that we need to see from this current administration.

Of course, we would like to see Canada play a bigger role in the world. I have said that many times. I have said many times that in this multipolar world, in this vastly changing world, having that voice, being present, is so important. This government's fixation on trade to the exclusion of diplomacy, peacekeeping and development has put our foreign policy in a very dangerous place.

We have heard, many times, from the government that we have a feminist foreign policy and yet I do not see that in the actions that this government takes.

A feminist foreign policy would require us to invest in development and to look at where we sell arms and how we engage with other countries. It would require us to recognize the impacts of things like the humanitarian crisis happening right now in the Lachin corridor in Nagorno—Karabakh. It would require us to recognize that the people who bear the burden of these horrific events are women and girls. They are the ones who will suffer the most in these situations.

As a member of Parliament in a country that purports to have a feminist foreign policy, obviously one no one has ever seen but that is what we have been told, this is something that needs to be raised. We need to be looking at how that feminist foreign policy informs what we do and how we engage with Azerbaijanis who are committing ethnic cleansing against the Armenian people.

For me, there are steps we can take. There are more things that Canada can do. I think it is vital that we actually take those steps.

Knowing that the diplomatic talks are happening in Brussels today, I would also urge the government to reach out to all channels that we have to encourage the Azerbaijanis to come in good faith, and to encourage other countries within the EU, the United States and our allies to come to those talks with meaningful, concrete steps that can stop the violence against civilians.

Dialogue is the only way out of this very complex issue. It is the only solution. Any violence against civilians will never result in a peaceful outcome for the people of Azerbaijan or the people of Armenia. There has to be dialogue. There has to be engagement with the international community.

Frankly, there has to be recognition that what the Azerbaijani government is doing right now is wrong. What it is doing right now is ethnic cleansing. It is against the law. It is against international law. It is morally incorrect, morally wrong, and it should be called out for that right now. That should be raised by our foreign minister and our government.

I will finish today by once again reiterating that Canada needs to do more. We need to step up and have a bigger voice on the international stage. As I mentioned, cuts to our official development assistance, cuts to support for international development organizations that are working around the world and changes to our legislation, which make it much more difficult for Canadian organizations to provide life-saving humanitarian and development aid around the world, are heading us in the wrong direction. It is taking our foreign policy in the wrong direction. We should be investing in people. We should be investing in those experts in our community that do development assistance. We should be committing to doing everything we can in this context and in contexts around the world.

I am deeply worried about the people of Armenia and about the tens of thousands of people who are fleeing violence right now. I ask, as strongly as I possible can, the Government of Canada to do more to alleviate their suffering.

[Dave Epp, Conservative, Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON]

Madam Speaker, I share with hon. colleague a heart for many matters around Canada's place in the world and international development assistance.

In light of the humanitarian crisis right now, and the people from Nagorno-Karabakh fleeing, what specifically could Canada do today to apply international pressure? The member referenced the meetings going on in Brussels. What specifically could Canada do?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague as well. We do work very well together on the foreign affairs committee, and I know he recognizes the vital importance of international development and Canada's role in that.

As I mentioned earlier in my speech, the member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie and I wrote to the Minister of Foreign Affairs last week when this humanitarian crisis began to unfold further. Obviously, the blockades of the Lachin corridor have been happening for months, but with this recent expansion of aggression, we wrote to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. One of the things we asked for was that targeted sanctions, Magnitsky-style sanctions, be applied to the Azerbaijani officials who are responsible for the violence.

I also mentioned I think our sanctions regime is not as strong as it could be, but that will show that Canada is watching and is not happy with the direction the Azerbaijani government is taking, and it is going to be urging the international community to act upon that. It sends a really clear message that needs to be sent.

All of us standing in this place and showing solidarity with the Armenian people who are fleeing, the civilians who are fleeing for their safety, also sends a very important message. That piece that we have asked for, myself and the member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. member for Thérèse-De Blainville.

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Madam Speaker, I really liked the part of my colleague's speech about studying the sanctions regime from a feminist perspective. Often, in acts of aggression like this one, which must be condemned, women are direct or collateral victims. We should look at sanctions.

I would appreciate it if my colleague could tell us more about the sanctions that Canada could impose in this conflict, because it is a conflict.

In addition, given that the housing and cost of living crisis is a national crisis, I would like to know whether my colleague thought it was appropriate to table this motion this morning, as it is preventing us from debating issues that are critical for Quebeckers and Canadians.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Speaker, all the decisions we make regarding foreign policy need to be seen through that feminist lens. It is very important because we know the best thing we can do to alleviate the climate crisis is to educate women and girls. The best thing we can do to ensure a healthy environment and healthy community is to make sure that women and girls have what they need. All of our foreign affairs decisions need to be put through that lens.

With regard to the timing of this debate, I agree with the member wholeheartedly. The foreign affairs committee is looking at this issue right now. In fact, one of the members of her party raised this in our foreign affairs meeting just yesterday. There is a need for us to continue to look at this issue, but now is not the time. The surprise debates and tricks the Conservatives play so they can defer doing work on the things that we planned on discussing in the House is wrong.

One last thing I would point out is that we have other committees that are meeting and talking about very important work. I was supposed to be at the international human rights subcommittee today where we could have been pushing for a study on this exact topic in that subcommittee, yet that is not where I am today.

Right now, instead of working at the international human rights subcommittee, which is an important piece of work for this Parliament, I am engaging in a debate that was sprung on us by the Conservatives.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for calling out the Azerbaijani government on the outrageous humanitarian crisis happening right now. The Armenian National Committee of Canada has written to members of Parliament raising its concerns. Everyone is watching the situation very carefully. I am pleased that the member and my other colleague have written to the minister and brought this issue to the government's attention. To that end, given the urgency of the situation, has the minister or any of the government members responded to that letter?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Speaker, unfortunately, we have not yet heard back from the government. I would be very interested in hearing from the minister or the government as to whether they will be supporting the NDP's calls for sanctions on the Azerbaijani officials who are responsible for this recent aggression.

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

Madam Speaker, in the comments from the member of the NDP, she has called what we are doing today criminal and what is happening in this chamber wrong. We are acting as an opposition party in the House of Commons. The NDP, on the other hand, is completely supporting this Liberal agenda and pretending to criticize it. I would ask her this. When is she finally going to take a true NDP position and be in opposition to this out-of-control government?