diff --git a/Lib/distutils/extension.py b/Lib/distutils/extension.py
index 5b197fa58d2..e4209449e4b 100644
--- a/Lib/distutils/extension.py
+++ b/Lib/distutils/extension.py
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ modules in setup scripts."""
 
 __revision__ = "$Id$"
 
-import os, string
+import os, string, sys
 from types import *
 
 try: