Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for giving this speech.
In his speech, the Prime Minister talked about an additional expenditure of $310 million for development assistance in Afghanistan. A lot of us share this concern, that is, whether this government will follow a policy providing not only for military action in the region, but also for aid to complement what our military are doing.
My question is pretty precise. With this supplementary aid, does the government intend to spend money to the extent that it can in regions where our troops are making valiant efforts? The present fact is that, concerning aid, the Americans and others are much more present in the Kandahar region than we Canadians are. If our troops are there, it seems to me that our aid should follow the actions of our troops. I would like to know the government’s position on this subject.