§ Mr. AncramTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what discussions he has had with his(a) Libyan and (b) German counterparts concerning the seizure of the German-flagged ship BBC China; [146839]
(2) what part was played by British officials in the recent tracking and seizure of the German-flagged ship BBC China. [146840]
§ Mr. Straw[holding answer 12 January 2004]: It is our policy to co-operate with our allies in seeking to take action against the transport of goods which could contribute to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The UK is an active participant in the Proliferation Security Initiative designed to improve international co-ordination in this area. I am withholding further information under exemption 1 of Part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
§ Mr. MooreTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects that talks will be held with Libya about ending its programme for the development of weapons of mass destruction; which other countries he expects will be involved; and what role the International Atomic Energy Agency will play in the talks. [147071]
§ Mr. MacShane[holding answer 12 January 2004]: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has invited Libyan Foreign Minister Shalgam to visit London soon to discuss a range of bilateral and international issues. This will form part of the process of implementing the decision by Libya to dismantle its weapons of mass destruction programmes. Britain and the United States will now be taking forward the practical issues of verification and of the dismantling of these weapons in partnership with Libya and with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Organisation for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
We have committed ourselves to helping with the preparation of Libya's returns to the IAEA and OPCW and to helping dismantle the programmes Libya has agreed to destroy. Within their respective remits, the responsibility for verifying Libya's declarations lies with the IAEA and the OPCW, and it is for the Libyan authorities to inform these organisations about the details of their programmes. Declarations, as always in these areas, will need to be detailed and comprehensive.
§ Mr. AncramTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) from which country the BBC China set sail with the cargo of uranium enrichment equipment seized in Italian territorial waters in October 2003; and in which country the equipment was made; [147379]
(2) what happened to the cargo seized from the BBC China in Italy in October 2003. [147380]
644W
§ Mr. AncramTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what role Mr. Nelson Mandela played in the recent change in relations between Libya and the United States and the United Kingdom. [147410]
§ Mr. StrawMr. Mandela had no involvement in the recent discussions on Libya's weapons programme. These discussions only involved officials and experts from Libya, the United States and the United Kingdom.