Kyrgyzstan (Hansard, 14 February 2003)

§ Mr. Pike
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with non-governmental organisations and international aid organisations regarding building relationships with Kyrgyzstan; and if he will make a statement. [97163]

§ Mr. MacShane
Officials from the British Embassy in Kazakhstan, which is also responsible for relations with Kyrgyzstan, meet with Kyrgyz NGOs on a regular basis. The Department for International Development office in Bishkek liaises with international aid organisations in Kyrgyzstan and provides technical assistance to programmes funded by, among others, the World bank.
53W
DfID targets assistance in areas such as rural livelihoods, health, sanitation and water supply, tariff policy and social development.

§ Mr. Pike
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions the European Union has had regarding developing relations with Kyrgyzstan; and if he will make a statement. [97164]

§ Mr. MacShane
The framework for relations between the EU and Kyrgyzstan is the EU-Kyrgyzstan Partnership and Co-operation Agreement (PCA). Officials from EU member states and Kyrgyzstan meet annually at a Co-operation Council and a Co-operation Committee in Brussels to discuss progress in relations. The Co-operation Committee last met in November 2002. In the course of developing the dialogue between the parties, the EU occasionally makes representations locally, most recently in late January. It also regularly makes statements at the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on bilateral issues and issues of concern. For example, the EU welcomed the recent consultative process of constitutional reform in Kyrgyzstan, but later expressed reservations about it.
The fourth Co-operation Council met in July 2002. The fourth Co-operation Committee will meet in March 2003, and a broad ranging agenda will cover economic issues, justice and home affairs, foreign policy, regional co-operation, democracy and human rights. The most recent statement on Kyrgyzstan at the OSCE Permanent Council was on 6 February.