Thank you for the question. I can certainly speak to it from an RCMP perspective.
As this committee and you will be aware, Mr. Caputo, I have significant knowledge of that MOU and I'm happy to provide a larger context around the purpose and how the RCMP engages in MOUs with many different law enforcement agencies across the country.
It would be our organizational position, out of respect for our partnership with the Ministry of Public Security in China and with our partners, and in the approach to good collaboration and good work with another law enforcement agency, that it's generally not the RCMP's position to release MOUs without third party consent.
That said, the RCMP commissioner can, at the direction of the Minister of Public Safety, be directed to release MOUs, etc., in the purview of the government.
Our perspective on that article, although we're not likely to have seen that article but are obviously familiar with the media response and the response of many different journalists, is that the RCMP commissioner and I, as his delegate, would not have the authority and/or the ability to release it without consulting with our partners from the Ministry of Public Security in China.
Again, obviously we take ministerial direction, and that would be within the purview of the Government of Canada, but specifically for the RCMP commissioner, it would be our position that third party consent is appropriate.