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Mr. Bill Olner (Nuneaton): May I associate myself with the Foreign Secretary's comments, especially in sending condolences to the families of people in the consulate who died in the atrocious attack? I was there with colleagues two weeks ago and recall that the consulate is in the middle of a general shopping area where ordinary people would have been going about their ordinary daily lives. Is there anything the Foreign Secretary can do to ensure that such atrocious attacks do not deter good, ordinary people from going about their normal duties? The terrorists must not be seen to have won.
Mr. Straw: I agree with my hon. Friend.
In response to an earlier question on whether we will provide assistance to the Turkish authorities, we stand ready to provide any assistance we can. In addition to the rapid deployment team from the Foreign Office, a team from the Metropolitan Police Service will also fly out on the same aeroplane this afternoon.
Sir John Stanley (Tonbridge and Malling): Given the clear threat warning to British interests represented by the synagogue attacks in Istanbul last Saturday, was a specific request made to the Turkish authorities for increased security for the British consulate in Istanbul earlier this week? If so, what was their response?
Mr. Straw: I cannot say at this juncture whether specific requests were made, but we may be able to provide the information in due course.
Mr. Fabian Hamilton (Leeds, North-East): Two weeks ago, I was also at the consulate general in Istanbul with colleagues. One thing that struck me was the very warm relationship between Jewish Turks and the majority Muslim Turks, which was severely damaged by the bombing of the synagogue at the weekend. Has my right hon. Friend had the chance to speak to Roger Short, the consul general, or Jim Begbie, the deputy head of mission, this morning? Will this terrorist outrage have an effect on the policies of the consulate general and the Foreign Office of employing as many locally engaged staff as possible? Many of them will have been injured; I hope none have been killed.
Mr. Straw: For reasons which I hope are, sadly, all too obvious, it has not been possible to speak to any consulate staff in Istanbul. I have, however, spoken to our ambassador, Peter Westmacott, who is on his way there.
Derek Conway (Old Bexley and Sidcup): The whole House will echo the sincerity of the condolences that the Foreign Secretary expressed today. Will he take this opportunity to reinforce the Government's support for Turkish entry into the European Union, as a long-standing democracy? As the Defence Secretary is by his side, will he pay tribute to the role of our NATO allies, in particular the superb Turkish armed forces in their peacekeeping role with NATO and in other parts of the world?
Mr. Straw: I am delighted to associate myself with the hon. Gentleman's remarks, as is my right hon. Friend the Defence Secretary.
Mr. Stuart Bell (Middlesbrough): Muslim leaders in my constituency to whom I spoke this morning share the sense of bereavement, loss and sorrow that is felt in this House for those who have been killed and injured. The same must go for every Muslim-faith community throughout the land. Does my right hon. Friend recall the words of Winston Churchill in a trans-Atlantic dialogue of 1942 about Nazi Germany:
- "What kind of people do they think we are?"
Mr. Straw: My hon. Friend is right. This evil of terrorism is something that we simply have to fight and defeat. There is no alternative. This is a global threat and a global challenge. The division is not between Islam and Christianity or any one religion and another. I know that the feelings of my many thousands of Muslim constituents about such atrocities are exactly the same as those of my non-Muslim constituents. We are part of one world—one civilisation—and the divide is between those who support the values of civilisation, including Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism and the other world religions, and those who wish to destroy the values of civilisation.
Angus Robertson (Moray): On behalf of the Scottish National party and Plaid Cymru, I associate myself entirely with the condolences offered by the Foreign Secretary and with his statement. It is self-evident that terrorism shows no respect for borders. Bearing that in mind, will the Foreign Secretary commit himself further than the very welcome bilateral measures that he announced, and say that the United Kingdom will also be working with partners that are EU members and accession countries to counter the threat of terrorism?
Mr. Straw: I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for associating his party and Plaid Cymru with what has been said in the House. We always work closely with our EU and accession partners to counter terrorism. The work of the international community as a whole has been significantly upgraded following the 11 September atrocity and the passage of Security Council resolution 1373.
Richard Burden (Birmingham, Northfield): I echo the Foreign Secretary's condemnation of the weekend's appalling attacks on the synagogues and today's outrage, as well as his condolences to the victims. As he says, we do not yet know who was responsible for those outrages. If it turns out to be al-Qaeda, or whoever else, as chair of the British-Palestine all-party group in this Parliament I must point out that such actions cannot claim in any way to advance the Palestinian cause—if that is claimed. Indeed, they are as much an insult to the Palestinian people and their quest for freedom as an insult to the rest of the world.
Mr. Straw: I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who speaks with great authority on the matter, as chairman of the all-party group on Palestine.
Mr. David Tredinnick (Bosworth): Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is an essential part of the war against terrorism and that it should be put at the top of the political agenda? Will he encourage President Bush to do that in America?
Mr. Straw: Look, resolution of a number of conflicts is at the top of the political agenda and right at the top is that of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Indeed, President Bush and our Prime Minister have been talking about that at the press conference that is coinciding with this statement. I have the same view as the hon. Gentleman about the importance of resolving the middle east crisis, but there is no justification or excuse for that sort of terrorism. It is the rejectionist terrorists working from the occupied territories into Israel and elsewhere who are continually setting back the cause of peace in the middle east, undermining not only the prospects for peace among the Israelis and the west but for a peaceful future for their own people, the Palestinians.
Mr. Ben Chapman (Wirral, South): Given that this was a direct attack on British interests and in a sense on British territory, has my right hon. Friend, even at this early stage, been able to assess the implications for homeland security?
Mr. Straw: It will come as no surprise to the House to learn that following the attack a series of meetings and arrangements were put into place, including a meeting of Cobra in the Cabinet Office briefing room, to assess the implications for security at our posts abroad and here at home.
Mr. Douglas Hogg (Sleaford and North Hykeham): The Foreign Secretary will clearly be reviewing security at all posts. Does he agree that it is an essential principle that it is desirable to keep posts open if at all possible? It may be necessary to reduce the number of staff or to evacuate families, but he will surely be assigning close protection teams where there are high risks. Does he agree that Great Britain in general and the Foreign Service in particular gained great credit for remaining open in such places as Beirut and Algiers in extremely difficult circumstances and that that should be the principle that should continue to operate?
Mr. Straw: I share the right hon. and learned Gentleman's view. I pay tribute to the bravery, for that is what it is, of many of our staff and their families in the foreign service. On Remembrance day, on 11 November at 11 am, we always have a service in the Foreign Office in remembrance of the staff who have been killed in service, as we did on Tuesday week. That is a reminder that it is our military that bear the overwhelming brunt of these sacrifices, but that our own staff and their families are also there in the front line. My first responsibility has to be for the safety of our staff and our families. Subject to that, I entirely agree with the right hon. and learned Gentleman. Wherever I have been faced with decisions about whether wholly to evacuate a post or simply to draw down staff and keep a basic service going, in consultation with the staff on the ground, I have always sought to keep our posts open—obviously, providing an appropriate level of protection.
That is of profound importance in continuing to represent British interests and diplomacy, but also in showing that we are not going to be defeated by terrorism.
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