§ Baroness ELLIOT of HARWOODMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have made or will make representations to the Government of the Soviet Union concerning the deployment of 2,000 Soviet, 3,000 East German and 15,000 Cuban military personnel in the Ethiopian/Eritrean War in direct disregard of the Helsinki agreement.
§ The SECRETARY of STATE for FOREIGN and COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS (Lord Carrington)My Lords, we have made clear to the Soviet Union and her allies our concern about the involvement of their forces in Africa.
§ Baroness ELLIOT of HARWOODMy Lords, while thanking my noble friend for that Answer, may I say that I hope very much that, under his expert guidance, we shall continue to make whatever representations we can about the behaviour of the Russians in this area.
§ Lord CARRINGTONYes, my Lords; I might say, in passing, that I find it rather ironic that those African countries which are at the moment denouncing us in the Security Council about the ceasefire in Rhodesia, which has been infinitely 978 more successful than most of us could have hoped, should at the same time seem to ignore the situation to which my noble friend has drawn attention.
§ Lord AVEBURYMy Lords, is the Secretary of State aware that when this matter was taken up with the previous Government about a year ago they declined to refer the question of Eritrea to the Security Council on the grounds that such a move would be unlikely to secure enough international backing, particularly from African countries, and that the African countries might be opposed to its ventilation on OAU grounds of territorial integrity? But, my Lords, would the noble Lord not agree that the latter argument has lost a good deal of its force by reason of the recognition by many African countries of the claims of the Polisario Front in West Sahara, while the general condemnation of Soviet intervention in Afghanistan makes it more likely that a move in the Security Council in respect of Eritrea would be successful now?
§ Lord CARRINGTONMy Lords, I am obliged to the noble Lord for that suggestion, and I will look into it.
§ Lord ORR-EWINGMy Lords, has my noble friend noted that many of the Helsinki monitoring force in Moscow have already been arrested and deported? Do we keep a Helsinki monitoring force available here? Do we make representations every time there is a transgression in relation to the Helsinki agreement? Is there any purpose in the Helsinki powers congregating in Madrid in the present atmosphere and the present total destruction of the Helsinki spirit?
§ Lord CARRINGTONMy Lords, we of course make representations—a great many representations—particularly about violations of the Helsinki agreement which affect persons connected with this country. As I said to the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, I think the other day, we are prepared to continue the arms limitation talks and with détente, and with the CSC talks in Madrid; but, of course, what has happened inevitably casts a shadow over the whole process of détente, and will certainly slow it up.