§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent meetings his Department has held with military officials from countries of the former Warsaw pact; what information was exchanged; and what was the cost to his Department of the meetings.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonThe Ministry of Defence is continuing its policy of steadily building up military contacts with the countries of the former Warsaw pact, both bilaterally and under the auspices of the North Atlantic Co-operation Council (NACC). The seminar on the democratic management of defence, held at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) on 18 and 19 May, provided our most recent opportunity for contacts with military officials from the former Soviet republics and the countries of central and eastern Europe. In the margins of the seminar, Colonel General Omelichev, vice chief of the CIS Armed Forces, paid a call on the Chief of the General Staff; and, I received Lt. General Zhivitsa, Chief of Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Both calls provided a valuable opportunity for an exchange of views on the current situation in the CIS and eastern Europe. The final costs of these meetings are not yet available, but are expected to be minimal.