Jean-Marc Jacob

[Bosnia, June 15th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, I do not think either the minister or the Prime Minister have ever answered this question. They have said they will discuss the matter at the G-7 summit, and again we have the same response.

How can the government not commit to participating in the rapid reaction force-because we have still not had an answer-and thus abdicate its responsibility to further protect the safety of the peacekeepers in Bosnia at a time when many members of the large contingent of Canadian peacekeepers are in very precarious situations?

[Bosnia, June 15th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of National Defence.

As the minister mentioned, the heads of state at the G-7 Summit will be discussing the situation in Bosnia. However, yesterday in Washington, French President Jacques Chirac expressed his regret at the length of time it was taking to set up the rapid reaction force in Bosnia. Here, on the other hand, we still do not know whether Canada will be part of the force or not.

Would the Minister of National Defence tell us whether or not Canada will participate directly in the establishment of the rapid reaction force as France and Great Britain have proposed?

[Bosnia, June 13th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, while the Prime Minister's position is clear on the embargo, how does he explain the fact that, 48 hours before the start of the C-7 Summit, Canada has yet to decide on its participation in the rapid reaction force, which is to be debated at the G-7 Summit in Halifax?

[Bosnia, June 13th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister. Last weekend, the Bosnian President tried to meet the American President, Bill Clinton, to have the embargo on arms to Bosnia lifted. In the American Senate, a majority of Republicans and Democrats voted in favour of lifting the embargo, but the President is maintaining it for the time being.

Given the importance of maintaining the embargo, did the Prime Minister reiterate the need to maintain it to the President of Bosnia when they met?

[Bosnia, June 12th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister.

On June 9, the UN secretary general officially recommended that the security council approve the deployment of a rapid reaction force in Bosnia. While the UN is about to give the green light to such an operation, the Canadian government is still hesitant about Canada's participation in that force.

Will the Prime Minister tell us clearly whether a decision has finally been made regarding Canada's participation in a rapid reaction force in Bosnia?

[G-7 Summit, June 7th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, this morning the final press release of the G-7 Summit in Halifax, a summit that has not even taken place yet, was available to all. The source of this leak, which has embarrassed the governments of the six other G-7 countries, must be the Canadian government, the host of the summit. How confident the other G-7 countries must be of this government's reliability!

This amateurism puts us to shame. Quebecers and Canadians could be proud of the accomplishments of previous governments on the international scene. In earlier times, we were on the cutting edge of peacekeeping missions the world over. We once were the conscience of the western world regarding human rights. We once were the bridge between east and west, north and south, the United States and Europe. Today, the lack of imagination, of a vision for the future and the failure to see big have relegated us to a second rate role. The Canada of which so many people were once proud is no more.

[Helicopter Purchase, June 6th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, since the Deputy Prime Minister refused last Friday to make a commitment to exclude Agusta from any bidding process, can the Minister of Public Works make this commitment until the inquiry into the accusations against Agusta gets to the bottom of this matter? Is the minister ready to make this commitment?

[Helicopter Purchase, June 6th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Public Works.

Barely two years after the EH-101 helicopter contract was cancelled, the Minister of National Defence is said to be on the verge of recommending to cabinet the purchase of at least 47 new helicopters, 32 of them equipped for antisubmarine warfare.

How can the minister justify the fact that the government is about to acquire 47 new helicopters at a cost of $2.6 billion, when it is still negotiating the compensation to be paid for cancelling the current contract with Agusta, a firm which is the subject of very serious accusations of corruption and bribery in Europe?

[Bosnia, June 5th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, we learned this morning that Canada is preparing an operation for the withdrawal of 800 Canadian peacekeepers from Bosnia.

Are we to understand that Canada does not intend to participate in the rapid reaction force, preferring to withdraw its peacekeepers from Bosnia unilaterally under operation Cobra?

[Bosnia, June 5th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister.

Over the weekend, NATO decided to establish a rapid reaction force under UN command, which, for now, could include up to 10,000 men. France and Great Britain, among others, have already offered to participate. In Bosnia, the Serbs continue to hold more than 250 peacekeepers hostage, including 12 Canadians.

Would the Prime Minister bring us up to date on the situation of the Canadian peacekeepers held hostage and on the status of the negotiations toward their release?