Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Thank you very much, Mr. Ambassador, for being with us today. Thank you as well for acknowledging, in your opening remarks, the mistake made regarding the invitation that was extended to members in English only. Thank you for correcting that. I think you heard, as I did, the Prime Minister acknowledge that this was unacceptable. I think we can take you at your word to make sure that doesn't happen again.
Mr. Chair, I'd like to give notice of the following motion. My office will send it to the clerk in a few minutes. In the meantime, I'll read it out to you:
That the committee affirm its commitment to official bilingualism and express its concerns regarding the English only invitation sent to members of the committee by the Embassy of Canada to the United States; and that it invite Arun Thangaraj, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs to brief the committee on Global Affairs Canada’s Official Languages policy and its implementation across Canada’s embassies worldwide.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I will now move on and ask my questions.
Mr. Ambassador, if I remember correctly, you said earlier that you have been in your position for 67 days. My question has two parts.
Could you tell us what you have done so far in terms of diplomatic efforts, both regarding the negotiations to renegotiate the free trade agreement, as well as more broadly in our diplomatic relations with the United States?
What is your game plan? For example, what are your goals for your first year in Washington?