Foreign Affairs committee  Thank you.

Foreign Affairs committee  Yes, I think so. We've stated that we will be ending our combat role by 2011. President Obama has said that he did not come to Ottawa with an ask in his pocket, but it's pretty clear from listening to other people in his administration that they would like us to do more and to

Foreign Affairs committee  Yes, I do have some suggestions, and they proceed from the reality that people are talking about nuclear disarmament. During the Bush administration, they talked about arms control. They talked about a lot of things. They didn't talk about disarmament, but that is back on the a

Foreign Affairs committee  I know her well.

Foreign Affairs committee  Under the heading of what Canada can do in Afghanistan, I had these, of course: continue to train Afghan forces, which is the main mission of the Canadian Forces there now; continue to strengthen Afghan institutions, which is a job in part that has to happen in Kabul. And that's

Foreign Affairs committee  No, it's pursuant to the policy, and it certainly has to reflect the government's wishes. I'm saying you need somebody whose modus operandi is broader than just the bilateral relationship. And that has been the case. To go back to a semi-neutral example, in the 1980s Ambassador

Foreign Affairs committee  One of the most difficult things to do in Washington is to be sure you're talking to the right person on an issue, because it's a very big place. One of the things I was told when I first came to Washington was that if you don't like American foreign policy it's like the weathe

Foreign Affairs committee  I was being a bit slippery with the numbers. There are actually about 20, but I thought if I said five, people would pay attention. I don't think you want all 20 at once.

Foreign Affairs committee  It is the case. I don't have any inside information on how the embassy--

Foreign Affairs committee  What I would say is this. In those cases where we have an ambassador who has been able to do foreign policy and bilateral relations--and we've had a few of them--I think our impact has been stronger than in those cases where all we're trying to do is deal with bilateral issues. I

Foreign Affairs committee  I think it's the obvious point, and it's consistent with what I was saying. If you're carrying out a foreign policy that is effective, and if part of that foreign policy is of benefit to the United States, people are going to react to it. I think that's what it is. The United Sta

Foreign Affairs committee  I didn't know that.

Foreign Affairs committee  I don't think there's any doubt that we have been a lot stronger on the military side than we have been on the diplomatic side and on the aid side. On aid, we got off to a slow start. I think we've caught up quite a bit. On diplomacy, it's a little harder to see. I'm not saying t

Foreign Affairs committee  I'd like to turn my thing off, but it's brand new, and I don't know how to do it.

Foreign Affairs committee  I understand.