§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they hope to buy any weapons or weapons system from Belorussia.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Henley)The Government's policy when procuring defence equipment is to aim for best value for money. The prime means of achieving this is through the use of international competition for defence contracts, subject to international commitments and obligations, for example on non-proliferation. Suitably qualified companies in Belorussia may respond to invitations to tender for our contracts wherever they believe they can offer the best value for money. We would consider Belorussian bids on a case by case basis.