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Hugh Robertson (Faversham and Mid-Kent) (Con): The Secretary of State said in his earlier statement that the UK armoured battle group of the 1st Battalion Black Watch will deploy with supporting units such as medics, signallers and engineers. Will he confirm what armoured assets they will take with them, and whether they will have any air cover from the UK base?

Mr. Hoon: They will deploy with their Warrior equipment.

Hugh Robertson: I had hoped that the Secretary of State would say whether they will take any armoured squadrons and main battle tanks with them, and whether there will be helicopter support.

Mr. Hoon: In fact, I answered the hon. Gentleman's question precisely.

Hugh Robertson: Will it be Warriors?

Mr. Hoon: They will take their Warrior equipment with them.

There also remains much to do in Afghanistan. The very successful presidential elections show that the foundations are now in place for the country to be peaceful, stable, democratic and free from terrorism. Some 880 personnel from the Army and the Royal Air Force are deployed in Afghanistan. Most serve with the international security assistance force, helping to maintain stability in Kabul, or serving with provincial reconstruction teams in northern Afghanistan to help the Afghan Transitional Authority progressively extend its reach across the country.

The Afghan presidential elections on 9 October are proof of how much the Afghan people have achieved since the Taliban fell. Our armed forces played their full part in making that success possible. The British
 
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contingent in Kabul increased its patrolling over the election period, and it patrolled continuously for the two days immediately before the poll. Our provincial reconstruction teams provided liaison services to assist in preparation for the elections, while the very visible air patrols of our Harrier GR7s, the deployment of which I announced on 8 September, provided a valuable deterrent effect. Drug production and smuggling, however, remain a significant problem. They finance instability, distort the Afghan economy and are a direct cause of huge misery in Afghanistan and, of course, in this country. We will continue to play our full part in efforts to control the drugs trade. Similarly, the remnants of the Taliban still pose a threat, which is another reason for our deployment of Harrier GR7s in support of the coalition.

Mr. Dai Havard (Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney) (Lab): As my right hon. Friend knows, I recently spent a week with the British troops in Afghanistan. I wrote to him about the significant contribution that they are making to training the Afghan national army and raised the question of the resources available for such training, which is valuable in helping Afghans to rebuild their country, and for policing. Has my right hon. Friend had a chance to reconsider this matter, and can he say what those resources, which will be needed for quite a long time, will be?

Mr. Hoon: I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his observations and assistance. This matter is being looked at carefully, and although I do not intend to make an announcement today about the results of such inquiries, I can certainly say that we are committed to ensuring that the necessary resources in Afghanistan are provided to deal with the drugs threat.

Looking ahead, we are committed to the deployment of the headquarters of the Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps, to lead the international security assistance force in 2006. That is a clear demonstration of our longer-term strategic commitment to the security of the region, and to the Afghan people.

Mr. John Greenway (Ryedale) (Con): The Green Howards have just returned from a long tour of duty in Afghanistan and they acquitted themselves in exemplary fashion, as the Secretary of State knows. Will he think again about the proposal to abolish one of the regiments in the King's Division, and will he put to an end speculation about the use of RAF Fylingdales, which is in my constituency?

Mr. Hoon: I will deal in due course with the reorganisation of our Army and why it is necessary. If the hon. Gentleman wishes to intervene at an appropriate stage, I shall give way to him and we can discuss the matter further. On Fylingdales, I have explained to the House precisely what has been agreed with the United States. The speculation that I have read in certain newspapers is entirely wrong and misplaced.

We must not overlook the Balkans, where the political and military landscape has changed dramatically over the past 10 years, not least thanks to the deployment of UK armed forces as part of international peace support efforts. The countries of the Balkans have made huge strides in their aspiration to
 
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join the Euro-Atlantic community. NATO has played a vital role in moving the region towards this more stable state, and the United Kingdom has played its part this process. Success can be seen from the fact that NATO force levels in Bosnia have reduced from the original level of 60,000 troops to some 7,000. In Kosovo, NATO troop levels have been reduced from the 1999 figure of 55,000 to 17,500. NATO has decided to terminate its stabilisation force mission in Bosnia. That is the right decision for Bosnia, which is ready to take its next steps toward self-sustaining peace and stability.

The EU will support Bosnia in taking those steps. The EU mission, which takes over in Bosnia on 2 December, will include a robust military element at initially similar figures to those currently in SFOR. The EU mission will take on the main peace stabilisation role in Bosnia, working in support of the mission implementation plan of the office of High Representative Lord Ashdown. The residual NATO headquarters will concentrate on defence reform and partnership for peace, and will also carry out, together with the EU, certain operational tasks such as support to the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia. The UK will lead the first military element of the EU mission and provide the force commander, Major-General David Leakey. The NATO-EU partnership will be good for Bosnia and will help it further along the road towards membership of the EU and NATO.

Mike Gapes (Ilford, South) (Lab/Co-op): The Secretary of State will be aware that the Defence Committee was in Bosnia and Kosovo earlier this year. I would be grateful for his reassurance on one issue that worried us at that time. With the transition in Bosnia from NATO to EU responsibility, can we be absolutely certain that there will be no national caveats that will impair the effectiveness of the force? If difficulties arise in the future, will we be able to deal with them adequately? Can my right hon. Friend also reassure me on the situation in Kosovo, which is still rather worrying? Do we have enough forces in theatre to be able to cope if it erupts again?

Mr. Hoon: I can reassure my hon. Friend that we will have sufficient forces, either in theatre or available at sufficiently short notice—as with recent disturbances in Kosovo—to be on the scene fast enough to make a difference. That has always been an aspect of our approach. I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his interest in the Balkans. There is a risk, as I specifically said in my speech, of overlooking the significant progress made in Bosnia. It is crucial for Bosnia to develop for itself the ability to organise its political and military structures in order to take advantage of membership of international organisations.

The EU mission in Bosnia will be by far the largest military mission under EU leadership. It will also be the most extensive test of the Berlin-plus arrangements agreed at the Nice summit, which provide for the EU to call in NATO assets to sustain its missions. The United Kingdom believes that that mission will be an important milestone in proving the capability of EU defence and security policy that complements rather than competes with NATO.
 
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However, despite progress, the Balkans region remains volatile, as my hon. Friend the Member for Ilford, South (Mike Gapes) said. That was demonstrated by the violence in Kosovo during March this year. We cannot afford to be complacent. NATO and the UK remain determined to ensure peace and stability in that area.

Andrew Mackinlay (Thurrock) (Lab): Has my right hon. Friend had discussions with the Home Secretary about the intention to withdraw UK police from Kosovo? Many of us are disappointed that the highly valued and highly regarded British police are being withdrawn. It will surely have an impact on the capacity of our armed forces to deliver in that area. Will my right hon. Friend raise that problem as a matter of urgency with the Home Secretary to see whether the decision can be reviewed and reversed?

Mr. Hoon: I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his interest. Operations in the Balkans generally, and specifically in Kosovo, require a mixed force of highly trained military forces together with—as far as the policing aspect is concerned—rather more of the gendarmerie than is generally available in the UK. Some of our police officers are trained to use firearms, but that is not the tradition or the generality of our police forces. In the transition from circumstances where military forces are required to those where they are not, the role of the gendarmerie has been key. It may well be that the decision that I have to deal with is the result of other countries being prepared to provide a capability that we do not have in large numbers ourselves. Nevertheless, I will certainly take the matter up with my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary. If necessary, I shall write to my hon. Friend in due course.

The United Kingdom remains fully committed to the NATO over-the-horizon operational reserve force—vital in responding quickly and effectively to the security situation in both Bosnia and Kosovo. The necessity and value of that force and the key part that UK armed forces play was brought into sharp relief during the March violence, when this capability was central to helping to restore calm to Kosovo.

The range and number of operations on which our armed forces have been engaged in recent years show how much the strategic environment has evolved since the end of the cold war.

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