Mr. Speaker, I had the opportunity to discuss this problem with the President of the United States last week. I informed him that it was unacceptable to Canada that legislation passed by the U.S. Congress could apply outside that country.
On Monday and Tuesday, I had an opportunity to discuss the same problem with 13 Caribbean heads of government. In the joint press release issued at the conference, it was stated unanimously that laws with extraterritorial jurisdiction are unacceptable under international law.
Obviously, Mr. Helms' statement speaks for itself. My conversations with the president indicate that he is aware of Canada's objections, and that the bill is currently before Congress. We hope that people will become aware of the long term consequences if, at the international level, all countries took the same kind of initiative as the U.S. has.