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Mr. Hogg : I entirely agree with the main thrust of my hon. Friend's argument, that free markets and open access to them is of critical importance to underpinning the political reforms in the former Soviet Union and the central and eastern European countries. The British Government have been foremost in arguing the case for liberalising markets. We promoted the association agreements with the Visigrad group of countries and others and we are promoting the concept of free trade between the European Union, Russia and other countries from the former Soviet Union.
Mr. Hardy : The Minister may be aware that significant delegations from the former Warsaw pact states attended the recent assembly of Western European Union and that they were especially concerned to pursue security guarantees. Since their anxieties may well have increased in recent days, what meaningful and justifiable assurances or guarantees can western Europe offer?
Mr. Hogg : The hon. Gentleman is right to say that those countries are concerned about security questions. We are not in a position to give guarantees of the article 5 type and nor is the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation or any of the states within it. We are planning to thicken the relationship between NATO and the countries within the former Soviet Union and central and eastern Europe. In that context, the concept of partnership for peace initiated by the United States is extremely welcome. It will form the basis of the discussions to be held at the NATO summit in January and, broadly speaking, it was welcomed at the North Atlantic Co-operation Council meeting in Brussels about 10 days ago.
Kashmir
11. Mr. Knapman : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans Her Majesty's Government have to assist in resolving the problems in Kashmir.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We have repeatedly urged India and Pakistan to resolve their dispute through bilateral negotiation. I welcome the recent announcement that talks will be resumed early in the new year.
Mr. Knapman : I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his careful reply and for his excellent speech during an Adjournment debate last week. Will he reconsider the position in Kashmir, where thousands of people have been slaughtered--probably tens of thousands during the past three to four years --as that is poisoning relations between two of our oldest allies, India and Pakistan? In addition, if the pressure for substantive early bilateral talks between those two countries fails, will my hon. Friend refer the matter to the United Nations, which first passed a resolution on the matter in 1947?
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The best prospect at the moment is the resumption of talks, as my hon. Friend says. That is the way that we wish to be taken and we hope that there will be some progress. Of course, we have always made clear to the Indian Government our concern about human rights violations in Kashmir. There should be a dialogue and a political process in Kashmir, and an improvement in human rights there.
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Mr. Madden : Does the Minister agree that lasting peace will come to Jammu and Kashmir only if any political settlement is acceptable to the overwhelming majority of the people living in that region? If that is the case, does he agree that representatives of the people of Jammu and Kashmir should be directly involved in any discussions on Kashmir that are convened between the Governments of India and Pakistan?
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : As I said to the hon. Gentleman during the Adjournment debate the other night, the participants in any discussions must be a matter for the two parties to decide. But certainly we have always urged and continue to urge on the Indian Government the need for a political process in Kashmir.
Mr. Clifton-Brown : Does my hon. Friend agree that when the two parties--the two Pakistani Foreign Ministers and the Indian Prime Minister- -meet in January, they should make progress and that, above all, international observers should be allowed into Kashmir so that the rest of the world can see what is going on there?
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : My hon. Friend is right that people should go to Kashmir, and I have repeatedly urged that on representatives of the Indian Government. That is what we would certainly like to see.
Dr. John Cunningham : The Minister is right to welcome the news that India and Pakistan are to begin at Foreign Secretary level in January discussions on mutual problems, including the circumstances in Kashmir. Should not all friends of India, Pakistan and the people of Kashmir welcome that small but positive step forward? Was not it good news that the siege and occupation of the Hazratbal mosque in Srinagar ended without bloodshed?
We welcome the decision by the Government of the Republic of India to agree that Amnesty International should be given access to Kashmir to report on the circumstances that prevail there. Finally, I press on the Minister the need for the Government of India to be unequivocally told that the human and democratic rights of the people of Kashmir should be upheld in any settlement that may emerge.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : It is precisely because we respect the Indian Government as a democratic Government that we expect the rights of the people of Kashmir to be upheld and we are bringing pressure to bear on the Indian Government to recognise those important facts. I am glad that Amnesty International has recognised that there is positive progress in being able to go to India. I cannot confirm that Amnesty International has been invited to Kashmir, but it thinks that it will be able to visit the Punjab.
Azerbaijan
12. Mr. Colvin : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on relations with Azerbaijan.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Our relations with Azerbaijan are in very good order.
Mr. Colvin : What action are Her Majesty's Government taking to bring about the implementation of the four Security Council resolutions relating to the conflict involving Azerbaijan and Armenia? Can we expect an official visit from the President of Azerbaijan, President
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Aliev, next year? In view of the considerable business prospects for Britain in Azerbaijan--most notably, British Petroleum--and if the president is to visit this country, does not my right hon. and learned Friend think that there would be merit in a trade delegation to Azerbaijan under the Minister's leadership some time in the near future?Mr. Hogg : I am glad to say that I have been to Azerbaijan twice. As my hon. Friend knows, we have an ambassador in Baku. The trade opportunities in Azerbaijan, especially in the oil sector, are large and important to us. My hon. Friend will know that an agreement has been signed and is currently awaiting the approval of the Parliament and the president.
Yes, I hope that we shall have an opportunity to welcome President Aliev here early next year. As for the war involving Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia, I believe that the way forward lies through the Minsk process. We stand strongly and firmly behind that process.
Mr. Hutton : In the light of recent developments in Russia, and the gains of the Fascist parties in the parliamentary elections, is it not important for the British Government to take immediate and urgent steps to promote full diplomatic representations in the new states of the former Soviet Union, including Azerbaijan? Is it not extraordinary that, several years after the break-up of the Soviet Union, we still do not have full diplomatic representation in many of those states?
Mr. Hogg : I do not think that the hon. Gentleman was listening to my answer. I said that we had an ambassador in Baku. Perhaps he did not realise that Baku was the capital of Azerbaijan.
Sir Jim Spicer : Does my right hon. and learned Friend accept that when the people of Azerbaijan consider the example of Georgia, where we have seen direct Russian aggression, up to and including military intervention, they will be very careful before accepting any assurances given by the western powers at present?
Mr. Hogg : The present state of Azerbaijan is a cause of considerable anxiety to us all. We judge that there are many Armenian troops there, and it is important that they start the process of withdrawal. The Minsk process offers that prospect through a staged timetable, and I would say to the Armenians from Nagorno Karabakh and from Armenia, and to the Azeri Government, that it is essential that they work by, with and through the Minsk process.
Subsidiarity
13. Mr. Charles Kennedy : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress towards further subsidiarity since the coming into force of the Maastricht treaty.
Mr. Hurd : The Commission presented its subsidiarity report to the European Council on 10 December. We believe that it is a good start to a continuing process. The report calls for the repeal or simplification of some 25 per cent. of EC legislation. It covers 16 of the 24 items on the list that the French and British Governments submitted. Those include revision of the bathing and drinking water directives, the acquired rights directive, and the liability of service suppliers. One further item from the list has already been amended on those grounds, and the Commission is
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pursuing two others. All legislative proposals put forward by the Commission must now be tested against the requirements of subsidiarity.Mr. Charles Kennedy : I thank the Foreign Secretary for that informative reply. Will he take the opportunity to confirm, as he has confirmed before, that the best guarantee of effective subsidiarity is probably federalism, as understood elsewhere in the Community, although the same definition is not understood in sections of this country? Will the right hon. Gentleman therefore continue vigorously to apply subsidiarity within the nations and regions of the United Kingdom, and confirm that the Conservative Members of the European Parliament have subscribed to a federal future, through their affiliation to the European People's party?
Mr. Hurd : I advise the hon. Gentleman not to start dabbling in the different meanings of federalism. He will find himself in deeper water than he supposes, as his leader did in Brussels last week. The arrangements within the United Kingdom, as within any other member state, are a matter for the individual state. That was made clear in the Birmingham declaration last year.
Mr. Anthony Coombs : Does my right hon. Friend agree that the repeal or reform of 17 European measures at the Council last week is the first vindication of the Government's stance on subsidiarity during the Maastricht debate? Does he also agree that, provided that the common agricultural policy is adequately reformed, we can foresee a significant decrease in the competences of the European Community and the Commission, to the benefit of every country in Europe?
Mr. Hurd : My hon. Friend is right. I did not entirely blame the more sceptical of my right hon. and hon. Friends who, when subsidiarity was first discussed in the House, dismissed it as a mere phrase, but we are now turning it into a reality. This is the beginning of a process that will be extremely important. We said that it would be important, and we are making it important.
Ms Quin : If the Government succeed in abandoning the bathing and drinking water directives, will the Foreign Secretary tell us what will happen to the green dowry of £1 billion that was given to water companies during privatisation specifically to bring our water up to EC quality standards? Does the Foreign Secretary appreciate that the British public will not forgive a Government who put party dogma before water safety?
Mr. Hurd : The hon. Lady and the Labour party miss the point. The purification and cleansing of this country's water are matters on which she and her colleagues can reasonably press my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment ; that is fine. We do not think that the Commission in Brussels should lay down detailed regulations on such matters --regulations, which are, incidentally, out of date. What is new is that the Commission agrees with that point of view.
Norway
14. Sir Thomas Arnold : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about the recent visit of the Prime Minister to Norway.
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Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : The Norwegian Prime Minister, Mrs. Brundtland, visited London privately from 14 to 17 November. She called on the Prime Minister during that time and discussion covered the European Community, Norwegian accession and Norway's whaling policy.
Sir Thomas Arnold : During those talks, did my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister endorse Norway's role in the middle east process, and did he give similar support to Norway's peace initiative in Bosnia?
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : The Government have warmly congratulated the Norwegian Government on the mediatory role that they played in the Israeli- Palestinian breakthrough, and I further congratulated Mr. Holst, Norway's Foreign Minister when I was in Norway. That is only part of the way towards the comprehensive settlement that we still have to achieve.
Mr. Eric Clarke : Did the Minister raise with the Norwegian Prime Minister that country's whaling policy and condemn it for environmental reasons? Having said that, I have a great deal of affection for the Norwegian people because of the role that they played in the second world war and their great affinity with the Scottish nation.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : We all feel the same way about the Norwegians. During the discussion between Mrs. Brundtland and my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, Mrs. Brundtland described Norway's whaling policy. Our Prime Minister reiterated the British position and our support for EC legislation--the habitats directive and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species regulations, which amount to a de facto ban on commercial whaling. Anyone who wishes to see an end to Norwegian whaling should welcome the Norwegian accession to the Community in due course.
Falkland Islands
15. Mr. Shersby : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last visited the Falkland Islands to discuss arrangements for agreements with Argentina relating to fishing and oil exploration.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : I visited the Falkland Islands from 12 to 17 November. During my visit, I discussed fisheries and oil with the Falkland Islands Government and elected councillors.
Mr. Shersby : In view of the decision of the Falklands Islands Government to pursue exploration for hydrocarbons in the area of the continental shelf, will my hon. Friend assure the House that as soon as the necessary legislation is forthcoming from the Falkland Islands, it will be followed by a prompt announcement on exclusive licensing arrangements?
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : We do not yet know whether there is any oil-- at least, any oil of commercial quantities--in the Falklands waters. Two seismic surveys are under way and the results will be published in the early part of next year. Meanwhile, the Falkland Islands Government, assisted by us, are drawing up legislation with the prospect of a second exploration round, which may be announced next year.
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Middle East
16. Mr. Cyril D. Townsend : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on Britain's support for the Washington accord on resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary to the question asked by the hon. Member for Glasgow, Hillhead (Mr. Galloway).
Mr. Townsend : Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that it is vital to keep up the momentum of the peace process in the middle east and that there is a need to get Syria and Jordan involved as soon as we can? I welcome the support that Britain will give to the Palestinian police force. Will we be equipping it as well?
Mr. Hogg : I entirely agree with what my hon. Friend has said. [Interruption.] I thought that that was a tribute to my answer, but I see that it is not. It is important to keep up the momentum. Yes, the Syrian-Israeli track must be supported. Yes, technical assistance will be given to the
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Palestinian police force. We will assist with training, and if we can find appropriate equipment, we will see if we can provide that as well.Mr. Ernie Ross : Will the Minister of State ask his right hon. Friend the Secretary of State when he visits Israel to impress on the Israeli Government the need to release the 10,000 Palestinian prisoners? When he discusses the issue with him, will he also offer to the Israelis, but especially to the Palestinians, some form of package to help to resettle the 10,000 prisoners in the occupied territories when they are released from Israeli gaols?
Mr. Hogg : My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary will have heard that question. Yes, indeed, the release of the detainees is an important part of the confidence-building process and of making it plain to the Palestinian community that there are positive benefits to be gained from the accord. The settlement of the detainees and their families is an important point and Chairman Arafat acknowledged that when pressing for a substantial area of land to be handed to the Palestinians as part of the Jericho region.
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