House of Commons
Monday 27 November 2000
The House met at half-past Two o'clock
PRAYERS
[Mr. Speaker in the Chair]
Oral Answers to Questions
DEFENCE
The Secretary of State was asked--
Bosnia and Kosovo
1. Siobhain McDonagh (Mitcham and Morden): What recent discussions he has had with his European and NATO counterparts on Bosnia and Kosovo. [138571]
The Minister for the Armed Forces (Mr. John Spellar): I and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence take every opportunity to discuss issues relating to the Balkans, including Bosnia and Kosovo, with our European and NATO counterparts. The informal NATO Defence Ministers' meeting held in Birmingham in October this year covered these issues, as will the NATO Defence Ministers' meeting in Brussels next week. In addition, my right hon. Friend has recently met his French and German counterparts, and the Balkans region was discussed.
Siobhain McDonagh: Does my hon. Friend agree that, with the onset of winter, it is particularly important to ensure that our forces in Bosnia and Kosovo are adequately housed? If so, will he inform me of what the Government are doing about this matter?
Mr. Spellar: It is a question not just of what we are doing, but of what we have done. Although the temporary improved tented accommodation was by no means as bad as it was depicted, we certainly needed to make improvements. The new field accommodation is excellent, it is bedding in well and it has been well received. Arguably, it is among the best in the region.
Mr. Paul Keetch (Hereford): Can the Minister confirm that, in his discussions with NATO and European Union allies, he has continued to receive advice at the highest level on Kosovo and Bosnia from Sir Charles Guthrie, the Chief of the Defence Staff? Has not Sir Charles always offered high level, independent advice to successive Governments, not just as Chief of the Defence Staff, but when he was leader of the SAS? Are not the recent attacks on him by the Conservative press a thinly veiled political attack?
Mr. Spellar: I can only find myself in agreement with the hon. Gentleman. [Interruption.] I notice that the
hon. Member for Reigate (Mr. Blunt) is laughing, but he was in the forefront of previous attacks on the Chief of Defence Staff during the Kosovo crisis. The politicisation of attacks on senior members of the military is disgraceful, but I firmly believe that they relate to the underlying problem that the "born to rule" lot on the Opposition Benches cannot accept a different Government. They will attack any public servant who does his job properly by working for the democratically elected Government.
Mr. Fabian Hamilton (Leeds, North-East): Can my hon. Friend assure the House that KFOR will do all that it can to protect the interests of minority ethnic groups in Kosovo? That is the key to achieving a long-term settlement.
Mr. Spellar: Not only can I assure my hon. Friend of that, but I have seen it in action when I have been to Pristina. It is enormously important to maintain the peace, and that is why urgent talks are taking place on the situation in the Presovo valley.
Mr. Iain Duncan Smith (Chingford and Woodford Green): Can the Minister explain, for the benefit of the whole House, Her Majesty's Government attitude to the latest developments in the Presovo valley, particularly in light of Belgrade's demands that the Komanovo agreement be renegotiated? Over the weekend, three Serb policemen were murdered and President Kostunica has sent armoured troops into the area nearby. He wants the villages taken by the Albanians to be returned and he has made two demands, not least that armed Serb police be moved into the buffer zone.
Will the Minister say for the benefit of the whole House and the nation whether, if President Kostunica gets his way, the Government fear that British troops will be put at risk by Albanians who are disgruntled that NATO is perhaps siding with the Serbs? Alternatively, if President Kostunica does not get his way, does the Minister think that that might result in his position in Serbia proper being destabilised?
Mr. Spellar: I thank the hon. Gentleman for his balanced question. It is a difficult issue and we went in to maintain a multi-ethnic Kosovo. We and the other nations involved in KFOR are concerned by any moves that could be destabilising. That is precisely why discussions have taken place between KFOR and the representatives of the Yugoslav Government, and I understand that a leading representative will go to Belgrade for further talks. I can also report to the House that arrangements are being made for the handover of the bodies of the three Serb policemen who were killed in the recent engagement, so there have also obviously been discussions with representatives of the Albanian side to try to stabilise the position.
That is all that I can say today about an uncertain situation. I would argue that it is returning to normality, but that does not mean, by any means, that we are through the problems yet. Further talks are required, but I pay tribute to the leadership of KFOR, which is handling the matter extremely well on behalf of both communities in the area.
Mr. Mike Gapes (Ilford, South): My hon. Friend referred to the importance of stability in Kosovo.
Does he agree that any move by the new United States Administration to take precipitate action to withdraw their forces from Kosovo and Bosnia could only be destabilising, and could lead to an upsurge of violence and renewed conflict throughout the region?
Mr. Spellar: We have had no indication from either representative who could form the new Administration that he is proposing precipitate action in Kosovo or the Balkans more widely.
EU Defence Initiatives
2. Mr. Desmond Swayne (New Forest, West): What plans he has to meet the German Defence Minister to discuss EU defence initiatives. [138572]
The Secretary of State for Defence (Mr. Geoffrey Hoon): I met the German Defence Minister on 20 and 21 November at the capabilities commitments conference in Brussels, and I shall meet him again at the North Atlantic Council Defence Ministers' meeting on 5 and 6 December, at which the European defence initiative will undoubtedly be discussed.
Mr. Swayne: The declaration from the conference on 20 November refers to a force catalogue which specifies the detailed commitments of member states. Will the Secretary of State place a copy of that in the Library?
Mr. Hoon: As I have already told the House, the representation by United Kingdom forces in the force catalogue can be made available. The amount and nature of the offering from other member states are a matter for them.
Mr. Geoffrey Robinson (Coventry, North-West): Is my right hon. Friend aware that our decision to participate in the European defence initiative has been widely welcomed by Labour Members? In light of the robust support that it has received from Madeleine Albright and other spokesmen for the American defence department, can he assure the House that our participation in the joint strike fighter programme with the Americans, of which we are funding £200 million of the development phase, will be unaffected by our role in the European initiative?
Mr. Hoon: We have also had a good deal of support from the Opposition--the former Deputy Prime Minister, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, the former Foreign Secretary and the former Conservative party chairman--together with all the leaders of NATO who see improvements in the European defence capability as being good for Europe and good for NATO. As for the JSF, although no decisions have been taken, I can assure my hon. Friend that the proposal is being carefully considered.
Sir Peter Tapsell (Louth and Horncastle): When the Secretary of State meets the German Defence Minister, will he tell him by how much the Government intend to increase the number of people in the British Army, at present 106,000, to meet the new obligations that will be incurred by membership of the European rapid reaction force?
Mr. Hoon: I am sorry that the hon. Gentleman, who usually speaks knowledgeably on such matters, has not read the observations that the hon. Member for Salisbury
(Mr. Key) made on the radio on Sunday, in which he made it clear that the European rapid reaction force is not a standing force. There is no additional requirement. We only have one set of British forces and we will be able to use them once at the behest of a British Prime Minister.As I listened to the hon. Member for Salisbury on Sunday morning, I heard the distinct sounds of a U-turn, perhaps provoked, from his point of view--or at least that of the Conservative party--by an unhelpful poll in the Mail on Sunday which showed that the great majority of the British public welcome Britain's participation in improving European defence capability.
Mr. David Borrow (South Ribble): May I tell my right hon. Friend how important European co-operation in defence is to my constituents who are employed on the production of the Eurofighter? They are greatly concerned that if the Conservative party were to return to government, many of their jobs would be at risk as a result of the party's opposition to European co-operation. Will my right hon. Friend assure me and my constituents that a Labour Government will never put those jobs at risk?
Mr. Hoon: I can give my hon. Friend that assurance. That matter shows how much the Conservative party has changed. It used consistently to support European co-operation through the Eurofighter project, but now questions whether it is a useful additional capability for the British armed forces--and certainly questions consistent involvement with our European partners in almost any aspect of defence co-operation. That must be a matter of grave concern to those people in the Conservative party who support co-operation in Europe.
Sir Sydney Chapman (Chipping Barnet): Has the Secretary of State made any assessment of whether it is more likely that United States troops will be withdrawn from Bosnia as a result of the creation of the European rapid reaction force? If they were withdrawn, is he satisfied that the new European rapid reaction force could fill, fully and effectively, the role of the United States forces in that region?
Mr. Hoon: The hon. Gentleman really should know that there is absolutely no connection between the two subjects that he thrusts together in that way. The American Administration, from the President down, has consistently supported the development of European defence co-operation, recognising that that co-operation is good both for Europe and for NATO.
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