§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the advantage of extending the scope of the laser weapons protocol to include civil war conflicts; what measures he proposes to improve the transparency and verification arrangements; and if he will make a statement. [12757]
§ Mr. David DavisIn common with other western countries, we support the extension of the scope of the 1981 UN weaponry convention protocols on both laser blinding weapons and land mines so that they apply also during non-international armed conflict. We also support the inclusion of effective transparency, compliance and verification arrangements. We shall pursue these questions at the concluding session of the weaponry convention review conference in Geneva from 22 April to 3 May.
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§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will discuss with his Indian counterparts their policy towards the laser weapon protocol, with particular reference to its extension to cover civil war conflict; and if he will make a statement. [12758]
§ Mr. DavisWe intend to hold discussions with a number of countries before the final session of the 1981 UN weaponry convention review conference in Geneva from 22 April to 3 May with a view to securing the extension of the scope of the convention's protocols on land mines and laser building weapons to non-international armed conflict.