Foreign Affairs Council

HC Deb 06 December 1991 vol 200 cc262-3W

Mr. Barry Field

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish a statement on the outcome of the Foreign Affairs Council on 2 December.

Mr. Hurd

My hon. Friend the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and I represented the United Kingdom at the Foreign Affairs Council on 2 December. The Council agreed a package of positive measures towards the Yugoslav republics of Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia-Herzgovina and Macedonia. These restored to those republics the preferential trade access arrangements previously available to Yugoslavia as a whole under the trade and co-operation agreement on the ground that they are co-operating with the EC's efforts to restore peace. The Council also invited the Commission to reinstate the EC's PHARE technical assistance programme and disbursement of funds under the EC's second financial protocol with respect to the four republics.

Ministers discussed the bombing of flights Pan Am 103 and UTA 772. They issued a statement affirming that they took a most serious view of the accusation against Libyan officials, endorsing the demands of the British, French and United States Governments and calling upon the Libyan authorities to comply promptly and in full with these demands.

Ministers also issued a statement welcoming the democratic manner in which the Ukrainian people had declared their wish for independence and calling upon the Ukraine to pursue with the Soviet Union and the other republics an open and constructive dialogue intended to ensure that all the Soviet Union's existing international obligations and commitments were carried out.

In a statement on East Timor, Ministers reiterated their condemnation of the unjustifiable actions by the Indonesian armed forces in Dili. They called for a thorough investigation by independent experts and decided to review EC co-operation with Indonesia in the light of the Indonesian response.

The Council had a brief discussion about preparation for the Maastricht European Council. The Council decided to ask the Commission to make proposals for a Community trade embargo against Haiti.

An EC/Egypt Co-operation Council was held in the margins of the Foreign Affairs Council, followed by a lunch at which Ministers discussed with Foreign Minister Moussa the middle east peace process.