Lord Loomba
Main Page: Lord Loomba (Crossbench - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Loomba's debates with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
(3 years, 2 months ago)
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Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)
My Lords, that is primarily a matter for the OSCE. However, the point the noble Lord, Lord Anderson, made with respect to Russia has to be considered by all members of the OSCE to ensure that each member state is adhering to the principles of whatever organisation they belong to.
Lord Loomba (CB) [V]
My Lords, it is very clear that democracy in Belarus is in name only. President Lukashenko is no less than a dictator who has ruled Belarus for over a quarter of a century, ignoring the opposition political party and protesters and inflicting human rights atrocities. Can the Minister tell us what steps the Government are taking to ensure that Belarus remains an independent republic and does not become part of Russia, which is its largest political and economic partner under the influence of Putin?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)
My Lords, we will continue to work with key partners and, as I said, through multilateral fora to ensure that there is a free, transparent election in Belarus which ensures the freedoms and rights of all its citizens.