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Russia
28. Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he next intends to discuss with his Russian counterpart attacks on Jewish people and their property in Russia. [104219]
Mr. Keith Vaz: Anti-semitism and other human rights issues are regular subjects of discussion in my meetings with my Russian counterpart. My officials also raised our concerns on anti-semitism in the recent annual UK/Russia human rights talks in London.
We will continue to be active on this issue.
Iran
29. Mr. Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last made representations to the Government of Iran on the 13 Jews arrested on charges of espionage. [104220]
Mr. Hain:
My right hon. Friends the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary raised the cases of those detained on espionage charges, including 13 members of the Iranian Jewish community, with Foreign Minister Kharrazi during his visit from 10-12 January. Dr. Kharrazi assured them both that those detained would receive a fair trial including access to families and legal representation.
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Mr. Gapes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the Government of the Russian Federation relating to the supply of missile-related goods and technology to Iran. [104771]
Mr. Hain:
We are concerned that a number of Russian companies and institutions may have exported missile- related goods and technology to Iran. This would not be consistent with Russia's commitments under the terms of the conventions and export control regimes of which she is a member.
We regularly discuss these concerns with the Government of the Russian Federation, both bilaterally and in multilateral fora, such as the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR).
During the visit of my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary to Russia from 3-5 March 1999, he discussed the dangers of exporting weapons and related technology to the Middle East.
Mr. Gapes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on Iran's ability to produce missiles with a range of more than 500 miles. [104768]
Mr. Hain:
In conjunction with other government departments we regularly assess Iran's ability to produce long range ballistic missiles, drawing on numerous sources.
We and our EU partners remain concerned by Iran's development of the Shahab-3 ballistic missile, with a range of 1300kms. We regularly engage the Iranian authorities on proliferation issues and have urged Iran to refrain from the further development of such missiles, while understanding Iran's legitimate security concerns.
We are aware that Iran has ambitions to develop a satellite launch vehicle capability.
Mr. Fabian Hamilton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Iran since the testing of the Shahab-3 missile in July 1999. [104855]
Mr. Hain:
We have established regular dialogue with the Government of Iran on non-proliferation issues. During our contacts, while mindful of legitimate Iranian security concerns, we have repeatedly stressed the importance we attach to global efforts to limit the development of long range ballistic missiles, and shall continue to do so.
During the official visit to the UK of the Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Kamal Kharrazi from 10-12 January, Dr. Kharrazi and the Secretary of State agreed to continue dialogue on bilateral, regional and international political issues.
Mr. Fabian Hamilton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what intelligence reports he has received regarding the range, payload capacity and purpose of the Shahab-4 missile currently under development in Iran. [104857]
Mr. Hain:
My hon. Friend the Member for Leeds, North-East will understand the security constraints that prevent us from discussing intelligence reporting.
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Mr. Fabian Hamilton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his assessment of Iran's capability to produce nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and their delivery systems without outside help. [104854]
Mr. Hain:
In conjunction with other Government Departments, we regularly assess the status of efforts by a number of countries to develop or acquire weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver them. Such assessments draw heavily on intelligence sources and we are therefore unable to comment further.
Iran is a Non-Nuclear-Weapon State Party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and a State Party to the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention. We continue to encourage Iran to respect these treaties and to comply fully with its obligations under them.
Mr. Fabian Hamilton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of (a) the evidence of the involvement of Hamas in terrorism and (b) the threat from Hamas to UK interests. [104859]
Mr. Battle:
Any such assessment of Hamas's involvement could only be made from intelligence sources and would, therefore, be exempted from disclosure under Exemption 1 of the Code of Practice on access to Government Information.
Hamas leaders have repeatedly stated publicly that their area of activity is Israel and that they have no policy of attacking external interests. UK interests are therefore not directly targeted, although we condemn terrorism in all its forms and at whomever it is directed.
Mr. Fabian Hamilton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the evidence concerning financial links between Iran and Hamas; and if he will make a statement. [104858]
Mr. Battle:
This Government and our EU colleagues have frequently raised with the Iranians our concerns about their support for groups who use violent methods to oppose the Middle East Peace Process and will continue to do so. Any assessment by HMG of the extent of the financial links could only come from intelligence and is, therefore, exempted from disclosure under Exemption 1 of the Code of Practice on access to Government Information.
Mr. Fabian Hamilton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the range of the Shahab-3 missile tested by Iran in July 1999 and of the countries that fall within its range. [104856]
Mr. Hain:
We regularly discuss proliferation issues with Iran and have frequently expressed our concern about Iranian attempts to develop ballistic missile systems. We remain particularly concerned by Iran's development of the Shahab-3 ballistic missile, with a range of 1,300kms and therefore capable of reaching any of the neighbouring countries within this range. Such a system could pose a threat to stability in the region.
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Iran is not the only country in the region to possess such technology, and we understand Iran's legitimate security concerns. However we continue to urge Iran to refrain from the development of ballistic missiles.
30. Ann Clwyd:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the UK's relationship with Iraq. [104221]
Mr. Hain:
As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, our relationship with Iraq is governed by the need to ensure Iraqi compliance with its obligations under Security Council resolutions. The most recent of these is SCR 1284, adopted on 17 December, after months of negotiations led by the UK. SCR 1284 establishes a new platform for the UN's dealings with Iraq, with provisions covering disarmament, humanitarian and Kuwaiti issues. Our priority now is its implementation.
31. Mr. Wyatt:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the middle east peace process. [104222]
Mr. Hain:
We welcome the recent progress in the resumption of talks on the Syrian track. Progress will undoubtedly be hard work, but both sides have already shown a high degree of commitment to intensive talks and we hope a just and lasting agreement will follow.
Implementation of the Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum by the Israelis and Palestinians is proceeding again, after a short hiatus. We wish both parties every success in their negotiations towards a Framework Agreement for Permanent Status, due in February. The United Kingdom will support them in any way it can in their search for an agreement.
32. Mr. Randall:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on Government policy towards Montenegro. [104223]
34. Mr. Lidington:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the current situation in Montenegro. [104225]
Mr. Vaz:
The UK Government are keeping a close eye on the situation in Montenegro. We continue to support the reformist and democratic Government of President Djukanovic and will work with our EU partners to encourage the extension of the culture of democracy in Montenegro to the whole of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
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