Bill Graham

[Foreign Affairs, February 24th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has personally been working through the Commonwealth to bring pressure on Mr. Mugabe to bring his regime into conformity with the obligations that he has as a Commonwealth member.

Through the Minister for International Cooperation we have aid programs to help people in that country. We work with NGOs and with Zimbabweans to help them in terms of democracy building. We tell the government of Zimbabwe that we do not tolerate the conduct which we and the member opposite find totally reprehensible.

[Foreign Affairs, February 24th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said, Canada has been engaged in many meetings at the United Nations and elsewhere. We are actively pursuing the role that we would take in the event of any problems in the area of Iraq.

We will continue to do so, but we are concentrating at this time on ensuring that we get a peaceful resolution to this problem.

[Foreign Affairs, February 24th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, the last that I read about this matter, the United States had made the point that it intended to administer Iraq after and that it did not intend to turn it over to the very people who have the hon. member so exercised.

We continue to work with everyone to make sure we bring this to a peaceful conclusion. We will continue to do that.

To try to pretend that Canada has been cut out of what we are doing in our mission in this, because we are not going to one meeting or another, is to mislead the Canadian public and to mislead the House.

[Foreign Affairs, February 24th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, we are participating in many discussions with our Washington allies and other allies. We are not involved in specific negotiations with specific groups in Iraq.

We will, however, be working, as we have been consistently throughout this process, to make sure we get a peaceful resolution in this matter, not by working with Iraqi dissidents in the process.

[Foreign Affairs, February 21st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada has always made it clear that we are opposed to the use of nuclear weapons or any weapons of mass destruction. We have constructively worked through the international community at the disarmament commission in Geneva which I attended last year.

We have consistently been working with all the powers, both to reduce the number of and to eliminate nuclear weapons, consistent with the non-proliferation treaty, and ultimately all weapons of mass destruction. The government is committed to this. It is an important part of our foreign policy and I want to assure the House that we will take all steps we possibly can to do that.

[Foreign Affairs, February 21st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I want to assure the hon. member that we speak out regularly about the human rights situation, both in Tibet and in China. We have registered protests concerning the execution and the recent sentences involving Tibetans in China, and we will continue.

We have two positions with the Chinese government. We remonstrate with them, we point out where we believe they are strongly in the wrong, and we also try to work with them to upgrade their human rights record by bringing them Canadian expertise in the courts and the human rights record in China.

[Foreign Affairs, February 21st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, one of the reasons we have been consistently working for peace is precisely because we do recognize the dangers that war will bring to the very troubled country of Iraq.

We also recognize that the long term stability of that region requires the disarmament of Saddam Hussein, which is why we have had a balanced policy regarding both of these.

My colleague, the Minister for International Cooperation, has been active with her colleagues to make sure that the United Nations and other international agencies will be there in the case of humanitarian need. Canada will be responsible for its humanitarian requirements. It always has been in the past and will be in the future.

[Foreign Affairs, February 21st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, it is an approach that is seeking to get the best possible results through the United Nations system and to keep the United States operating within the Security Council, which it has done up to date, with the encouragement of Canada, Great Britain, other allies of the United States, and even countries as disparate as Russia and France.

We all have an interest in making sure that the Security Council system works and the inspection system works. That is the objective of Canada, that has been our consistent objective and we will stay there.

[Iraq, February 21st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, we have always strongly supported the objectives set out in resolution 1441. We have strongly supported that and the United States knows that and often has expressed gratitude for Canada's position.

Canada's position has also been that we believe strongly in working through this process through strengthening the UN process because in the long run, that will be for the benefit of the United States. It will be for the benefit of Canadians and it will be for the benefit of the world.

That is the process we are engaged in. We will continue in that role as that is the most constructive role that Canada can play.

[Iraq, February 21st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, we are actively promoting the inspection process. I think that Mr. Blix will soon report, in March, on the timeframe that he needs to complete his mission.

This is a way to deliver a clear message that may avoid a war for the international community. We are continuing our work to support the process being implemented by Mr. Blix.