Mr. Chair, as a former military person, I think that if a request for that were made, it would be considered by our government.
I can say that there is a lot of support being provided in Africa at this point. On January 22, the U.S. air force deployed French troops in Mali. Also the Germans and others are supporting the cleanup of Malian territory from terrorists, and also from neighbouring countries. We also need to note that January 16 was very close to the French intervention and that it was on January 11 that there was the terrorist attack on Amenas, north of the Malian border.
I would also like to inform the hon. member that I participated in the emergency debate at the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly that took place from January 21 to 23. There, I had quite good information on what was going on in Mali.
To conclude, I think our government will consider the necessary steps as the situation evolves, on the premise that the Prime Minister outlined that we will not provide combat troops on the ground.