§ Mr. GapesTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement outlining the proposals tabled by NATO in Vienna on the modernisation of the conventional armed forces in Europe. [14777]
§ Mr. David DavisNATO is committed to adapting the conventional forces in Europe treaty to the changing European security environment. Our aim is to improve the security of all parties to the treaty by agreeing lower overall equipment limits; enhanced provisions for information exchange and verification; and measures to prevent destabilising concentration of forces in any region. NATO is drawing up a set of proposals to meet these objectives, which it hopes shortly to table in Vienna.
§ Mr. GapesTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on Her Majesty's Government's policy in respect of the limits set out in the conventional armed forces in Europe treaty, with particular reference to the impact of changes in the former Soviet Union. [14776]
§ Mr. DavisWhen the Warsaw pact was dissolved, its limits for weapons holdings under the CFE treaty were divided between its former members under the Oslo agreement of 1992. The former Soviet Union's limits were later divided between the relevant successor states under the Tashkent agreement of 1992. During negotiations to adapt the CFE treaty, we and our NATO allies are committed to completing the process of updating the bloc-to-bloc structure of the treaty.