Mr. Speaker, on February 23 I had the opportunity to ask the Minister of Foreign Affairs about a white paper that was issued by mainland China on the previous day. In that white paper Beijing threatened to adopt all drastic measures possible, including the use of force, if Taiwan did not set a date for the discussions on reunification back to communist control.
Incidentally, just six days earlier the vice-president of the Republic of China, Mr. Lien Chan, spoke to the mainland affairs committee. I would like to quote just one paragraph from his statement:
During the past 50 years, the two sides have experienced conflicts and antagonism, wasting excessive resources and manpower. At the beginning of the new century, we should no longer be tangled in these quarrels between brothers, which only hurt brotherly feelings and do nothing good for the international community. Therefore, I would like to propose that the governments and peoples on the two sides of the strait adopt a new way of thinking. Let us show our courage and a sense of mission to permanently abandon to the old century those wars and conflicts which have tied us down for nearly half a century.
The intention of the Taiwanese government is very clear, the government of a democratic nation.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs responded that Canada has always supported peaceful negotiations and that they will again relay that message to Beijing.
However there are no circumstances in which the threat of war is appropriate. I would like to ask the parliamentary secretary if he could explain to the House why Canada's response is not a stronger response. We need to defend democracies. We need to defend peaceful nations that do not want war.