§ 23. Mr. GogginsTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with other European Governments about additional funds for the reconstruction of Kosovo. [108553]
§ Mr. VazThe UK is in frequent contact with European partners on Kosovo reconstruction. The EU pledged 137 million euros for Kosovo reconstruction in 1999, and has agreed to provide 310 million euros this year.
Therefore, we welcomed the decision of yesterday's General Affairs Council to provide urgently 35 million euros in emergency support for the budget of the UN Mission in Kosovo.
Reconstruction is not just about economics. Kosovo's institutions need our help. The FCO is to give an additional £150,000 this month, via the OSCE Mission and the Council of Europe in Pristina, in particular to provide practical support to Kosovo's judiciary.
§ Mrs. GillanTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the security situation in Kosovska Mitrovica. [109714]
§ Mr. Vaz[holding answer 11 February 2000]: Violence erupted last week in Mitrovica, following an attack on a UNHCR bus in which two ethnic Serbs died. Reprisals led to deaths and injuries among Serbs and Albanians in the local population and injuries to troops in the NATO-led Kosovo force (KFOR). Following action by KFOR and the leaders of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), including the imposition of a curfew, the situation appears to have been brought under control.
Mitrovica is a particularly acute example of the continuing tensions between the communities in Kosovo. It underlines the importance of international efforts to 486W promote reconciliation and to condemn and act against violence and intimidation. It also emphasises the importance of both Serbs and Albanians working with UNMIK in the new joint administrative structures. The Kosovo Albanians are already participating. We hope the Kosovo Serbs will soon join them.
§ Mrs. GillanTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the political and security situation in(a) Kosovo, (b) Serbia, (c) Montenegro and (d) Vojvodina. [109712]
§ Mr. Vaz[holding answer 11 February 2000]: The political and security situation in Serbia clearly is desperate. The ruling coalition continues to intensify its repression of the independent media and of the democratic political parties through administrative and judicial harassment. The recent murders of Zeljko Raznatovic ("Arkan") and Federal Defence Minister Pavle Bulatovic—just the latest in a string of assassinations of high-ranking politicians, officials and businesspeople—show that violence has become endemic in public life.
Vojvodina, as part of Serbia, is suffering from the same degradation of democratic freedoms and public security.
In Montenegro, the government of President Djukanovic has made real efforts to introduce democratic reforms and promote the ethnic and social cohesion of Montenegro. However, Milosevic is undermining the economy and therefore the stability of Montenegro by blocking trade and financial transactions between Montenegro and Serbia. He and his supporters are also attempting to intimidate the legitimate government of Montenegro through the formation and deployment of special military units loyal to Belgrade.
In Kosovo, the security situation has improved since the arrival of the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) in June 1999. The number of crimes is decreasing. However, the recent upsurge in ethnic violence in the divided city of Mitrovica underlines the fragility of the security situation. KFOR and the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) are taking measures to tackle extremist behaviour by Kosovo Albanians and Serbs and to maintain peace and security in Mitrovica.
§ Mrs. GillanTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the Human Rights Watch report on civilian casualties in Kosovo; and if he will make a statement. [109719]
§ Mr. Vaz[holding answer 11 February 2000]: We welcome the acknowledgement in the Human Rights Watch Report of "gross violations of international humanitarian law" by the forces of the Milosevic regime. This puts into proper perspective its comments on the consequences of NATO action. NATO intervened, when all other options had been exhausted, to avert a humanitarian catastrophe. The great lengths to which NATO went to minimise civilian casualties are in stark contrast to the carefully planned and brutally executed terror perpetrated by FRY and Serbian forces in Kosovo.
§ Mrs. GillanTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his assessment of the economic impact of the Kosovo crisis on(a) Albania, (b) Bosnia-Herzegovina, (c) Bulgaria, (d) Croatia, (e) FYR Macedonia and (f) Romania. [109716]
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§ Mr. Vaz[holding answer 11 February 2000]: The international community is committed to helping the countries of south-eastern Europe raise their level of economic prosperity, to bring them into the European mainstream. The International Monetary Fund estimate the Kosovo crisis might have reduced regional GDP by up to 2 per cent. in 1999. However, provided governments of the region push ahead with key economic reforms, the medium-term prospects are bright.