§ 15. Mr. Russell Brown (Dumfries)How many British troops are currently stationed in Bosnia as part of NATO's multinational stabilisation force. [41310]
§ The Secretary of State for Defence (Mr. George Robertson)Some 5,200 UK troops are currently serving in former Yugoslavia as part of the NATO-led stabilisation force. Around 3,700 are based in Bosnia, with a further 1,500 serving in Croatia. Those figures exclude routine short-term fluctuations in numbers as units arrive and depart from theatre.
§ Mr. BrownI thank the Secretary of State for that information. Does he agree that it is vital that we retain our troops in Bosnia for a period beyond the middle of this year, so that we do not return to the sort of bloodshed that pre-dated the Dayton peace agreement?
§ Mr. RobertsonYes. The UK intends to continue to play its part in any NATO-led force after the expiry of 594 the existing SFOR mandate in 1998. However, we must expect and hope that Bosnia and the Bosnians will take a greater role in determining their future. We do not want a dependency culture to be created on the back of international troops in that area. There have been some failures throughout this period, but NATO has had some enormous successes as well, both in stopping the fighting and creating the conditions for peace and in ensuring that civic institutions with a sustainable future are, out of the ashes, beginning to be created.
§ Mr. David Tredinnick (Bosworth)Could the Secretary of State give some indication of the number of Territorials serving in Bosnia? If the Territorials, such as the five Leicestershire units that may be under threat, are cut, will he not have fewer reserves to draw on, when there is increasing crisis in the Army? Is that not a germane reason for thinking carefully about this proposed cut in Territorials?
§ Mr. RobertsonOver 2,000 Territorial Army personnel and other reserves have served in Bosnia. At times, about 10 per cent. of troops in that area are from our reserves. I pay strong tribute to what they have done.
We have no intention of destroying or undermining the Territorial Army or any of the reserve forces. We want to strengthen them; we want to give them a greater and more relevant role; we want to modernise them; and we want to ensure that they are useful. Those who have served in Bosnia have been an outstanding success and a great credit to this country. It is upon their experience and many other experiences that we are basing the conclusions that will appear in the defence review.