Pointing to Canada's successful system of banking regulation, Mr Harper rejects an international system of regulation. He says that individual nations must retain sovereignty over their regulatory systems but progress can be maintained on international standards. He defends Canada's "aggressive" stimulus - citing his country's strong underlying budgetary position - and also his decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan in 2011. He describes Iraq as a distraction from the Afghan campaign. He calls on the world to respect American leadership; resolution of the world's problems requires it, he insists.
