Kosovo: NATO Costs (Hansard, 28 June 1999)

§ The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Gilbert)
My Lords, individual nations are expected to bear the costs associated with their own military activity in support of Kosovo-related operations apart from those relating to running costs of NATO headquarters in-theatre and common-user infrastructure projects in support of operations, both of which will be eligible for NATO common funding. The Government are not therefore in a position to estimate what the total costs of NATO operations in response to the Kosovo crisis might be. It is also likely to be some time before the level of the United Kingdom's reimbursement from NATO common funding is known.

§ Lord Peyton of Yeovil
My Lords, I understand the Minister's difficulties. But, first, perhaps he will agree with me that that kind of venture cannot possibly be too frequently repeated. Secondly, this one all but came to 7 grief with a flood of advice from people who had much to say but were willing to do nothing. Lastly, perhaps I may take the Minister to an issue which he might find a little more difficult. What was his reaction to the unfortunate statement attributed to President Clinton that America having taken part in the destruction side it had little to offer when it came to reconstruction? If true, that would be a shameful affair and an indication of just how difficult it will be to achieve a fair settlement.

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I can certainly agree with the noble Lord that we do not want to see any more Kosovo crises in Europe or anywhere else on the face of this planet. It would be extremely difficult to reconstitute such an operation, and we hope that it will never come to pass. As to the views of people who did not involve themselves too greatly in the operation but had things to say about it, I think that a very great price was paid for keeping unanimity within the North Atlantic Council. The price, unfortunately, was paid by the citizens of Kosovo and also those of Serbia who suffered damage through NATO operations. It is certainly my view that had NATO been allowed to attack in the first few weeks the targets it was allowed to attack in the last few weeks the operation would have been over in a fraction of the time that it took.
I have not seen President Clinton's remarks in detail. However, I point out to your Lordships that the United States bore the overwhelming proportion of the cost of the military operations involved in Kosovo. In my view it is only right that Europe should pay more than its share of the reconstruction costs.

Lord Bruce of Donington
My Lords, in view of the fact that the costs to the United Kingdom of its significant part in the operation are likely to run into billions of pounds, will the noble Lord ask his right honourable friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether it would be possible to incorporate in the next Budget Statement, by a separate appendix, some indication, including the method of resource accounting or otherwise, of estimated cost?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I am not sure that I recognise the figures when my friend talks about the cost of the operation to the United Kingdom being of the order of billions of pounds. We have published a figure to the end of May. Expenditure on our military contribution was of the order of £43 million, but that did not include the cost of replenishing stocks of ordnance expended during the operations.

§ Lord Waddington
My Lords, did the Minister see the extraordinary report that the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry said in China that the bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade was nothing whatever to do with Britain and entirely a matter for the United States? Was that not a most extraordinary statement, not least because No. 10 was throughout the action putting it about that Mr Blair was in the lead, putting some guts into the President of the United States?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, as I have been out of the country for the past week, I am not familiar with the 8 report the noble Lord adduces in support of his remarks. It seems to me that he is involved in a most complex non sequitur. Whatever the attitude of the Prime Minister in encouraging operations, it had nothing whatever to do with events at the Chinese Embassy.

§ Lord Burnham
My Lords, the House will have heard with pleasure the statement of the Secretary of State that the costs of up to £43 million will be carried from central reserve. Can the Government give any view on their future policy on the sharing of future and continuing costs among participants to NATO's partnership for peace, bearing in mind that that includes Russia and many neutral countries?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I listened carefully to what the noble Lord said. Nothing in his question leads me to depart from the formula of the Answer I gave to the noble Lord, Lord Peyton. I shall check Hansard to see whether I have overlooked anything the noble Lord said. I should be precise. The agreement at the moment—discussions are taking place between the Ministry of Defence and the Treasury—is that the net additional costs of MoD operations will be subject to discussion and access to the reserves where the MoD is unable to accommodate those costs without prejudice to other commitments.

§ Lord Stoddart of Swindon
My Lords, reverting to the question of the involvement of the United States in the reconstruction of the area, I heard the American President state that America had played its part in the solving of the crisis and that it felt that the Europeans should bear the reconstruction costs. Is my noble friend aware that some estimates put those costs at over £100 billion? Is the United States serious in believing that it should not bear some of the costs of repairing the destruction which, in the main, it brought about?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I am not familiar with the estimate that my noble friend uses, but I put it to him that the United States bore 80 to 85 per cent of the costs of military operations on its own shoulders. As the whole of Europe has a gross domestic product not far short of that of the United States, it has, by subtraction, accepted only 15 per cent of the total costs. I do not know that the United States has ever said that it will walk away from all reconstruction costs and knowing the generosity of the American people it is unthinkable that it would. Equally, it is clear that this is a European problem and Europe has to make its full contribution.

§ Lord Cledwyn of Penrhos
My Lords, can my noble friend confirm that the 19 members of NATO are making a contribution?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, the 19 members of NATO will have been making a contribution to the operational costs according to the formula I gave in my original Answer. Questions of contributions to the reconstruction costs will be for every country to determine for itself in the fullness of time.