Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Minister, regarding the Canadian presence in Afghanistan, the Canadian population truly feels that the Department of Foreign Affairs is simply passively accepting decisions made by the Department of Defence.
There is something I would like to know. First, in the supplementary estimates, loans worth $450 million were approved to erase the government of Pakistan's debt, so that the country could invest in education-oriented programs. What was the basis of negotiations for debt forgiveness and what do the educational programs in which the government of Pakistan has committed to invest consist of? In addition—and this if even more important when it comes to Pakistan—what follow-up mechanisms have been put in place to ensure the monitoring of these commitments and to ensure that the government of Pakistan delivers on them?