§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the statement in paragraph 6 of the report by the Secretary of State for International Development of the meeting of the French, German, Italian, United Kingdom and United States development Ministers in London on 22 April on the subject of Kosovo refugee return that all partners intend to work for strong international financial institutions and European Union support for countries of the region indicates that the United States does not propose to participate except through the international financial institutions. [HL2571]
§ Baroness AmosThe statement in paragraph 6 of the report does not indicate that the United States intends to participate in support to countries of the region only through the international financial institutions. Indeed, all those countries that attended the meeting on 22 April are expected both to work for strong multilateral support to the countries in the region through the international financial institutions and the EU and to provide bilateral assistance.
§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the statement in paragraph 5 of the report by the Secretary of State for International Development of the meeting of the French, German, Italian, United Kingdom and United States development Ministers in London on 22 April on the subject of Kosovo refugee return, recommending the exploration of whether NATO humanitarian assistance could be brought into effect more quickly in Albania, has been put into effect. [HL2570]
§ Baroness AmosNATO (AFOR) is working in co-operation with UNHCR and the. Government of Albania in the humanitarian effort to support refugees and communities hosting refugees. NATO is liaising closely with the Emergency Management Group which is co-ordinating humanitarian operations. NATO assistance is taking the form of food delivery, refugee transport, humanitarian flight handling and infrastructure repairs. Military personnel are also actively involved in site identification and camp construction.
§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the statement in paragraph 2 of the report by the Secretary of State for International Development of the meeting of the French, German, Italian, United Kingdom and United States development Ministers in London on 22 April on the subject of Kosovo refugee return that it is important to avoid arrangements which favour one section such as the Kosovo Liberation Army above others indicates that they have been avoided. [HL2569]
90WA
§ Baroness AmosThe statement in paragraph 2 of the report makes the point that finalising longer-teen democratic structures too soon after the successful conclusion of the military campaign risks excluding some elements of Kosovar society. It could, for example, take time for all refugees to return home and to participate in the democratic process. We intend to avoid setting up arrangements which favour one group over another.
§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the proposal in paragraph 2 of the report of the Secretary of State for International Development of the meeting of the French, German, Italian, United Kingdom and United States development Ministers in London on 22 April on the subject of Kosovo refugee return, to the effect that NATO should be reinforced by providing humanitarian experts who could ensure that humanitarian and military aspects were properly linked, has been put into effect. [HL2568]
§ Baroness AmosThe Government are committed to advising and co-operating with the humanitarian assistance efforts of NATO forces in the region. To this end, the Department for International Development (DfID) has two NATO liaison officers working with Kosovo Force and Albania Force to strengthen the civil-military relationship and promote effective co-ordination in the plans for refugee return.