§ John BarrettTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the compliance of the Guinean Government with the UN arms embargo on Liberia. [84986]
§ Mr. RammellGuinea has supported maintenance of the arms embargo on Liberia, including as a member of the Security Council.
President Charles Taylor of Liberia alleges that Guinea is supplying the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) in breach of the arms embargo. The UN Security Council reaffirmed in a statement on 26 November, that the arms embargo applies to any recipient in Liberia, including non-state actors.
The UN Panel of Experts Report on Liberia of 7 October 2002 states that ammunition captured from LURD rebels in Liberia had been part of a shipment from the United Arab Emirates to Guinea. This shipment was reported to have been destroyed by fire. It is unclear how the ammunition could have come into the possession of the LURD.
We call on all countries, without exception, to respect the arms embargo on Liberia.