Thank you, Secretary, and thank you, officials, for being here and for the work you do on behalf of Canadians all the time.
I am tracking hurricane Melissa, which will land momentarily, probably as a level 5 hurricane that will affect Jamaica and probably Haiti and Cuba as well. This is something I'm glad you are tracking, and I hope the Canadian response is strong in the aftermath.
However, I want to focus less on a natural disaster and more on human-made disasters.
I had a meeting last week with the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross. We talked about the blatant disregard for the rules of war and international humanitarian law, the engagement of states in breaking those laws and then the aftermath.
Whether it's Russia in Ukraine or, allegedly, Israel in Palestine and Gaza, we have a disaster. The rules of law under the Geneva Conventions and other international humanitarian law are not being followed, and we will have to pay a bill.
How can you and the department work towards engagement on international law to ensure that Canadians won't be footing a bill later for human-made disasters because people have not followed international humanitarian law?