One hundred per cent, Mr. Chair.
I recall being at a state dinner for a visiting Canadian dignitary. This is going back to the late nineties. I think it was for a Speaker of the Senate. The deputy prime minister of Jordan stood up at the banquet, and his initial remark was, “Where's Canada?”
It's sad to say that this many years later it's still the case that there's no real diplomatic presence on the ground. Even if it's expensive or cumbersome to put in three new embassies all at once, at the very least we should have a real diplomatic representation in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, which is, if you like, somewhat neutral ground for the South Caucasus. We're essentially absent from the South Caucasus despite the strategic importance of the area, despite the large Armenian diaspora within Canada and despite real opportunities.
Just to give an example, it's an untapped market for universities in terms of recruiting from that area. I know that this is taking us far beyond the discussion today, but it's a really important region. We don't understand it here in Canada, and we've never made any real attempt to come to grips with it. In that context, when assessing substantial risk, as Ms. Mason referred to, we're somewhat blind in this regard. In the absence of real intelligence, I think we should be taking a really precautionary approach.
Thank you.