Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with counterparts in Central Asia since 1 January 2022 on the security implications of the fall of the Afghan government last summer.
Answered by James Heappey
The Secretary of State has not discussed the security implications of the fall of the Afghan government with counterparts in Central Asia. I have visited Qatar, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Pakistan and have raised the matter with my counterparts. The UK continues to coordinate our response with partners in the region.
Asked by: Lord Bowness (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Callanan on 4 April (HL7258), how many of OneWeb’s satellites have been abandoned in Kazakhstan following the decision to suspend use of Russian Soyuz launch vehicles; what is their combined value; and what plans they have to seek their return.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
This information is commercially confidential and is a matter for the company.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps her Department is taking to increase trade with central Asian countries.
Answered by Ranil Jayawardena
Fast growing economies such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan provide an abundance of opportunities for British business across a wide range of sectors.
My Department is supporting British business to grab these opportunities through trade dialogues and regular business to business exchanges, including the annual United Kingdom-Kazakhstan Inter-Governmental Commission that I co-chaired late last year in Astana.
We are working hard to remove trade barriers with Uzbekistan too.For example, an update to their Intellectual Property regime, removing barriers for British businesses could be worth over £11million per year.
Asked by: Lord Bowness (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Callanan on 25 January (HL5301), whether OneWeb is still using Russian facilities for its launches after Russia's invasion of Ukraine; and how much is paid (1) directly, or (2) indirectly, to Russian organisations in respect of each launch.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Board of OneWeb voted on 3 March to suspend all launches from Baikonur, Kazakhstan. OneWeb’s launch service provider, Arianespace, announced on 4 March it was suspending the use of Russian Soyuz launch vehicles.
Details of OneWeb’s launch agreements with Arianespace are commercially sensitive.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, given the reported violations of human rights in Kazakhstan and the treatment of former Prime Minister Karim Massimov, what assessment they have made of (1) the threat to the UK’s long-term relations with Kazakhstan, and (2) the UK's wider security interests in the region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government is following events in Kazakhstan closely. We greatly regret the loss of life and injuries sustained as a result of unrest in January and condemned the violence and destruction of property that occurred. We await a full account of what led to these unprecedented events.
In my recent meetings with Kazakh counterparts, including Deputy Foreign Minister Vassilenko on 2 March, I [Lord Ahmad] asked for an update on the commission set up by President Tokayev to investigate the causes of the violence. We have stressed that this process should be conducted urgently, transparently and effectively, and have sought reassurance that Kazakhstan's international human rights obligations, including commitments to due process and freedom of speech and expression, will be respected.
Kazakhstan is an important partner for the UK. We have built a productive dialogue and wide-ranging ties over the 30 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, sharing experience and jointly tackling global challenges including on security issues. We are committed to furthering that cooperation and will seek opportunities, with international partners, to encourage the economic and social reform priorities set out by President Tokayev.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Kazakhstan on the status of (1) individuals arrested during protests in that country in January, and (2) the detention of former Prime Minister Karim Massimov.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government is following events in Kazakhstan closely. We greatly regret the loss of life and injuries sustained as a result of unrest in January and condemned the violence and destruction of property that occurred. We await a full account of what led to these unprecedented events.
In my recent meetings with Kazakh counterparts, including Deputy Foreign Minister Vassilenko on 2 March, I [Lord Ahmad] asked for an update on the commission set up by President Tokayev to investigate the causes of the violence. We have stressed that this process should be conducted urgently, transparently and effectively, and have sought reassurance that Kazakhstan's international human rights obligations, including commitments to due process and freedom of speech and expression, will be respected.
Kazakhstan is an important partner for the UK. We have built a productive dialogue and wide-ranging ties over the 30 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, sharing experience and jointly tackling global challenges including on security issues. We are committed to furthering that cooperation and will seek opportunities, with international partners, to encourage the economic and social reform priorities set out by President Tokayev.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations she has made to her counterpart in Kazakhstan on the (a) use of force by security forces on people protesting against living standards and (b) repression of peaceful protest.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
Following the outbreak of violence in Kazakhstan, My Noble Friend the Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon met senior representatives of the Kazakh government, including President Tokayev’s Special Representative. In these contacts, he underlined the need to ensure that law enforcement responses to protests are proportionate, in accordance with Kazakhstan’s international obligations. He also stressed the importance of the investigation into the unrest being conducted urgently, transparently and effectively.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department has made an assessment of whether military goods exported to Kazakhstan were used by government forces against protestors in January 2022.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The Government takes its strategic export control responsibilities very seriously. We examine every application on a case-by-case basis against strict criteria. Risks around human rights violations and abuses are a key part of our assessment. The Government will not grant a licence for items where we determine there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate internal repression, or where we determine there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law. We can and do respond quickly and flexibly to changing or fluid international situations. All licences are kept under careful and continual review as standard.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether her Department has revised its licensing of military goods for export to Kazakhstan in the context of protests in Kazakhstan in January 2022.
Answered by Ranil Jayawardena
All licences – to all markets – are kept under careful and continual review and we are able to suspend, refuse or revoke licences as circumstances require. An export licence will not be granted (or, if extant, it would be revoked) if it is incompatible with any of the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria. This includes Criterion 2a, which assesses whether there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate internal repression.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of recent unrest in Kazakhstan.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The Government continues to follow events in Kazakhstan closely. We greatly regretted the loss of life and injuries sustained as a result of unrest in January and condemned the violence and destruction of property that occurred. We await a full account of what led to these unprecedented events. We have taken note of President Tokayev's characterisation of what happened as an 'attempted coup' and his decision to establish an investigative commission. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Minister of State responsible for Central Asia and Human Rights, was assured by President Tokayev's Special Representative, Ambassador Kazykhan, that the work of the commission would be transparent and effective.
As well as being crucial for accountability, a comprehensive understanding of events will be important to securing public support for the programme of social, economic and political reforms outlined by President Tokayev following the January events. The UK supports the aims of the reforms that President Tokayev seeks to bring about, in the context of the close ties we have developed with Kazakhstan over the 30 years since diplomatic relations were established