Mr. Speaker, certainly we share the member's concerns, and unequivocally condemn the comments made by Iranian leaders that threaten the destruction of Israel. We also condemn any support given by the Iranian government for terror groups in the Middle East, whether it be Syria, Iraq, or elsewhere.
However, New Democrats believe that Canada has an important diplomatic role to play in bringing Iran back into the mainstream international community, and denouncing the Iran regime cannot replace strong diplomacy.
We have consular cases. The member talked about Canadians abroad who are in trouble. We currently have Canadians in Iran who are in trouble, and we do not have a clear path in our communication with Iran. That is unlike our allies, the Italians, the U.K., Jordan, or even the United States, where they have a special interest section. All of these countries are allies and have direct ways of communicating to Iran, and that is not just on consular files, but also on abuses that are happening within Iran. They are able to cite their concerns directly to Iran.
Does the member not believe that opening up diplomatic relations would help protect Canadians abroad on consular files, so that Canada can convey our concerns about human rights abuses and about certainly comments and atrocities that the Iranian government has made? Does she not believe that opening up diplomatic relations so that we can relay our concerns directly to the Iranian government would help?