§ Mr. RosindellTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's policy is on the situation in Chechnya. [184243]
§ Mr. RammellWe continue to be concerned by the situation in Chechnya. The assassination of Chechen President Kadyrov in May, and the 21 June raids into neighbouring Ingushetia underline the fragility of the situation in the Russian North Caucasus.
We recognise the genuine security problems Russia faces in Chechnya and the North Caucasus. We support Russia's territorial integrity. Separatist forces carry out many human rights abuses in Chechnya. We have been clear in our condemnation of the appalling terrorist attacks across Russia, which have killed many innocent victims.
However, these problems can only be resolved through a political rather than military solution. Continuing human rights abuses in Chechnya by federal and local forces can only undermine attempts to advance a genuine political process and reconciliation. Our policy is to regularly raise our concerns over Chechnya with the Russian authorities. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary did so recently with Foreign Minister Lavrov, during his visit to Moscow on 59W 6–7 July. I raised similar concerns during my visit to Russia on 6–7 April. In addition, we raise these concerns multilaterally through the EU, OSCE, Council of Europe and UN. We also give significant funding to international organisations and NGOs that provide humanitarian aid in the region.
The new Chechen presidential elections planned for August will be a fresh opportunity to build up the political process and aid efforts to bring stability to the Republic. We therefore hope the election will be genuinely open and inclusive, a hope we have expressed repeatedly to the Russians.