Bosnia (Hansard, 12 May 1994)

§ Mr. Worthington
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he regards the external borders of Bosnia-Herzegovina as unchangeable in any Bosnian settlement.

§ Mr. Douglas Hogg
We remain of the view that the only way to a lasting peace is through a settlement acceptable to the parties. The terms of that settlement, including territorial and constitutional arrangements, must be for the parties themselves to decide. Within a settlement, the external borders of Bosnia-Herzegovina would remain unchanged unless the parties agreed otherwise.

§ Mr. Worthington
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has about the extent of Serb forces in the Brcko area.

§ Mr. Douglas Hogg
The Posavina corridor, and Brcko which lies within it, is an area held by Bosnian Serb forces. The United Nations has recently deployed military observers to the area to monitor the situation. The United Nations has not made data available on the detailed deployment of Bosnian Serb forces in the area.

§ Mr. Worthington
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library the text of remarks made by the Minister of State, the right hon. and learned Member for Grantham, (Mr. Hogg), in Sarajevo about the retention of territory by the Serbs in any Bosnian settlement.

§ Mr. Douglas Hogg
My discussions with members of the Bosnian Government on Sarajevo on 3 May were confidential. No official statement was subsequently issued by either side. In comments to the press, I reiterated our support for the European Union action plan.

§ Mr. Wareing
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was his initial estimate of how many civilians were wounded in the recent fighting in Gorazde and on what information it is based; how many wounded have been evacuated from Gorazde since the latest ceasefire; and if he will make a statement.
246W

§ Mr. Douglas Hogg
Based on information provided by the local Bosnian authorities the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees report that the number of people wounded on the Bosnian Muslim side in the recent fighting in Gorazde was 715 dead and 1,970 wounded. No distinction is made between civilian and military casualties. A total of 290 casualties have been medically evacuated.

§ Mr. Worthington
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is UN and Nato policy about the defence of Brcko in Bosnia.

§ Mr. Douglas Hogg
The Security Council agreed a presidential statement on 4 May calling on all parties to agree to a resumption of negotiations and demanding that they refrain from any offensive military action, or any action likely to lead to renewed fighting. The statement noted with concern indications of increased tension in the Posavina corridor area where Brcko is situated, welcomed the steps taken by UNPROFOR to deploy military observers there, and warned the parties of the serious consequences of any offensive military action in the area. The Security Council is keeping the situation under review.
NATO stands ready to support the United Nations and UNPROFOR in the performance of its mandate.