Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the annulment of the outcome of the 4 October Parliamentary elections by the Central Election Committee of Kyrgyzstan, what assessment they have made of the political situation in Kyrgyzstan; and what discussions they have held, if any, with the government of Kyrgyzstan to support the safeguarding of the democratic process.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
Parliamentary elections on 4 October were marred by allegations of widespread electoral malpractice. There was significant political and social unrest and violence in the immediate days following the Parliamentary elections and the situation remains fragile.
It is for the people of Kyrgyzstan to choose their leaders in free and fair elections consistent with the constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic. The UK continues to call for an inclusive, legal and democratic resolution. We have delivered messages through Ministers and at the OSCE urging for peace and calling for the constitutional and democratic processes to be followed, and in support of the UN's work in this area. These messages have been reinforced by Her Majesty's Ambassador in Bishkek.
Asked by: Andrea Jenkyns (Conservative - Morley and Outwood)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of recent political developments in Kyrgyzstan.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
We are monitoring political developments in Kyrgyzstan following the arrest of former President Atambayev. There have been limited incidents of violence and unrest. We believe that it is important for the United Kingdom to continue to maintain its support, through our political engagement and programme activity, for Kyrgyzstan's ambition to strengthen democracy and the rule of law. Our Ambassador frequently engages with the Kyrgyz Government, stressing the importance of democratic standards and a free and fair judicial system for all. The United Kingdom's programme funding also works to support Kyrgyzstan's continued transition to a parliamentary democracy.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Kyrgyzstan authorities on ensuring the promotion of freedom of religion by that country's State Commission for Religious Affairs.
Answered by Alan Duncan
We engage with the Kyrgyzstan authorities across the full spectrum of human rights issues, including freedom of religion. Our Embassy in Bishkek regularly meets with representatives from local civil society and international organisations and the government, including the State Commission for Religious Affairs, to better understand the challenges to the promotion of freedom of religion. We have also supported efforts to further the dialogue between the State Commission for Religious Affairs and religious groups in country.
We are involved in a number of initiatives which indirectly support religious freedom and education within Kyrgyzstan. Only this month, British Imam Qari Muhammad Asim attended an international conference on Islam, organised by the State Commission for Religious Affairs in Bishkek, which recognised the importance of freedom of religion and interfaith dialogue.
We will continue to raise our concerns about human rights directly with the Kyrgyz Government, and in the appropriate international fora, at every suitable opportunity.
Asked by: Jo Stevens (Labour - Cardiff Central)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which foreign armed forces the UK armed forces has trained in the last 12 months.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The list below sets out the foreign states that were provided training and/or education by the UK Armed Forces for the period 25 July 2017 – 25 July 2018.
Afghanistan |
Albania |
Algeria |
Angola |
Anguilla |
Antigua and Barbuda |
Argentina |
Armenia |
Australia |
Austria |
Azerbaijan |
Bahamas, The |
Bahrain |
Bangladesh |
Barbados |
Belarus |
Belgium |
Belize |
Bermuda |
Bosnia & Herzegovina |
Botswana |
Brazil |
Brunei |
Bulgaria |
Cameroon |
Canada |
Chile |
China |
Colombia |
Cote D'Ivoire |
Croatia |
Cyprus |
Czech Republic |
Denmark |
Djibouti |
Dominican Republic |
East Timor |
Egypt |
Eritrea |
Estonia |
Ethiopia |
Fiji |
Finland |
France |
Gambia, The |
Georgia |
Germany |
Ghana |
Greece |
Guatemala |
Guyana |
Hungary |
Iceland |
India |
Indonesia |
Iraq |
Ireland |
Israel |
Italy |
Jamaica |
Japan |
Jordan |
Kazakhstan |
Kenya |
Kosovo |
Kuwait |
Kyrgyzstan |
Latvia |
Lebanon |
Liechtenstein |
Lithuania |
Luxembourg |
Macedonia |
Madagascar |
Malawi |
Malaysia |
Mali |
Malta |
Mauritania |
Mauritius |
Mexico |
Moldova |
Mongolia |
Montenegro |
Montserrat |
Morocco |
Nepal |
Netherlands |
New Zealand |
Niger |
Nigeria |
Norway |
Oman |
Pakistan |
Palestinian Autonomous Areas |
Papua New Guinea |
Paraguay |
Peru |
Philippines |
Poland |
Portugal |
Qatar |
Romania |
Rwanda |
Saudi Arabia |
Senegal |
Serbia |
Seychelles |
Sierra Leone |
Singapore |
Slovakia |
Slovenia |
Somalia |
South Africa |
South Korea |
Spain |
Sri Lanka |
St. Lucia |
Sudan |
Sweden |
Switzerland |
Tajikistan |
Tanzania |
Thailand |
Tonga |
Trinidad and Tobago |
Tunisia |
Turkey |
Uganda |
Ukraine |
United Arab Emirates |
Uruguay |
United States |
Uzbekistan |
Vanuatu |
Vietnam |
Zambia |
Zimbabwe |
Asked by: Lord Grocott (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which member states of the United Nations have recognised Palestine as a state.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
136 UN member states have recognised a Palestinian state. They are: Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Angola; Antigua & Barbuda; Argentina; Azerbaijan; Bahrain; Bangladesh; Belarus; Belize; Benin; Bhutan; Bolivia; Bosnia & Herzegovina; Botswana; Brazil; Brunei Darussalam; Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cambodia; Cape Verde; Central African Republic; Chad; Chile; China; Comoros; Republic of Congo; Costa Rica; Cote d' Ivoire; Cuba; Cyprus; Czech Republic; Democratic People's Republic of Korea; Democratic Republic of Congo; Djibouti; Dominica; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Egypt; El Salvador; Equatorial Guinea; Ethiopia; Gabon; Gambia; Georgia; Ghana; Grenada; Guatemala; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Guyana; Haiti; Honduras; Hungary; Iceland; India; Indonesia; Iran; Iraq; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; Kuwait; Kyrgyzstan; Lao People's Democratic Republic; Lebanon; Lesotho; Liberia; Libya; Madagascar; Malawi; Malaysia; Maldives; Mali; Malta; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mongolia; Montenegro; Morocco; Mozambique; Namibia; Nepal; Nicaragua; Niger; Nigeria; Oman; Pakistan; Papua New Guinea; Paraguay; Peru; Philippines; Poland; Qatar; Romania; Russian Federation; Rwanda; Saint Lucia; Sao Tome and Principe; Saudi Arabia; Senegal; Serbia; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; Slovakia; Somalia; South Africa; South Sudan; Sri Lanka; Saint Lucia; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; Sudan; Suriname; Swaziland; Sweden; Syria; Tajikistan; Tanzania; Thailand; Timor-Leste; Togo; Tunisia; Turkey; Turkmenistan; Uganda; Ukraine; United Arab Emirates; Uruguay; Uzbekistan; Vanuatu; Venezuela; Vietnam; Yemen; Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The Holy See, which is not a member of the United Nations but has permanent observer status, has also recognised a Palestinian state.
Asked by: Nia Griffith (Labour - Llanelli)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for which foreign states the UK's armed forces provide training; and which services provide training for each those states.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The table below sets out the foreign states that were provided training by each Service of the UK military in financial year 2017-18.
Army | Royal Navy | Royal Air Force | Joint Forces Command |
Afghanistan | Albania | Albania | Afghanistan |
Albania | Algeria | Australia | Albania |
Algeria | Angola | Bahrain | Algeria |
Armenia | Anguilla | Belgium | Argentina |
Australia | Antigua and Barbuda | Bosnia | Armenia |
Austria | Australia | Brazil | Australia |
Azerbaijan | Azerbaijan | Brunei | Azerbaijan |
Bahrain | Bahamas, The | Canada | Bahamas |
Bangladesh | Bahrain | China | Bahrain |
Barbados | Bangladesh | Czech Republic | Bangladesh |
Belarus | Barbados | Denmark | Barbados |
Belgium | Belgium | Dominican Republic | Belarus |
Belize | Belize | Egypt | Belgium |
Bermuda | Bosnia | Estonia | Belize |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | Brazil | France | Bermuda |
Botswana | Bulgaria | Germany | Bosnia and Herzegovina |
Brazil | Canada | Hong Kong | Botswana |
Brunei | Chile | India | Brazil |
Cameroon | Croatia | Iraq | Brunei |
Canada | Denmark | Italy | Burma |
Chile | Djibouti | Jamaica | Cameroon |
China | Dominican Republic | Jordan | Canada |
Colombia | Egypt | Kenya | Chile |
Czech Republic | Estonia | Kosovo | China |
Denmark | Fiji | Kuwait | Colombia |
Dominican Republic | France | Latvia | Cyprus |
Egypt | Georgia | Lithuania | Czech Republic |
Eritrea | Germany | Macedonia | Denmark |
Estonia | Ghana | Malta | East Timor |
Ethiopia | Greece | Malawi | Egypt |
Finland | Guyana | Netherlands | Estonia |
France | India | Nigeria | Fiji |
Gambia | Indonesia | Norway | Finland |
Georgia | Iraq | New Zealand | France |
Germany | Ireland | Oman | Gambia |
Ghana | Ivory Coast | Pakistan | Georgia |
Greece | Jamaica | Philippines | Germany |
Guyana | Jordan | Qatar | Ghana |
Iceland | Kenya | Saudi Arabia | Greece |
India | Kuwait | Serbia | Guatemala |
Indonesia | Lebanon | Seychelles | Guyana |
Iraq | Macedonia | Singapore | Iceland |
Ireland | Malaysia | Sweden | India |
Israel | Malta | Trinidad and Tobago | Indonesia |
Italy | Mexico | Tunisia | Iraq |
Ivory Coast | Montenegro | United Arab Emirates | Ireland |
Jamaica | Netherlands | Ukraine | Israel |
Japan | New Zealand | United States | Italy |
Jordan | Nigeria | Zambia | Jamaica |
Kazakhstan | Norway |
| Japan |
Kenya | Oman |
| Jordan |
Kosovo | Pakistan |
| Kazakhstan |
Kuwait | Philippines |
| Kenya |
Kyrgyzstan | Portugal |
| Kosovo |
Latvia | Qatar |
| Kuwait |
Lebanon | Romania |
| Kyrgyzstan |
Lithuania | Saudi Arabia |
| Lebanon |
Macedonia | Senegal |
| Macedonia |
Malawi | Seychelles |
| Malaysia |
Malaysia | Sierra Leone |
| Mali |
Malta | Singapore |
| Malta |
Mexico | Slovenia |
| Mexico |
Montenegro | Somalia (Somaliland) |
| Moldova |
Morocco | Sri Lanka |
| Montenegro |
Nepal | Tanzania |
| Nepal |
Netherlands | Thailand |
| Netherlands |
New Zealand | Tonga |
| New Zealand |
Nigeria | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Niger |
Norway | Uganda |
| Nigeria |
Oman | Ukraine |
| Norway |
Pakistan | United Arab Emirates |
| Oman |
Palestinian Autonomous Areas | United States |
| Pakistan |
Papua New Guinea | Vietnam |
| Palestinian Autonomous Areas |
Paraguay |
|
| Papua New Guinea |
Philippines |
|
| Philippines |
Portugal |
|
| Qatar |
Qatar |
|
| Rwanda |
Romania |
|
| Saudi Arabia |
Rwanda |
|
| Senegal |
Saudi Arabia |
|
| Serbia |
Serbia |
|
| Seychelles |
Sierra Leone |
|
| Sierra Leone |
Singapore |
|
| Singapore |
Slovakia |
| Somalia | |
Slovenia | South Africa | ||
Somalia |
|
| South Korea |
South Africa |
|
| Spain |
South Korea |
|
| Sri Lanka |
Spain |
|
| Sudan |
Sri Lanka |
|
| Sweden |
Sudan |
|
| Switzerland |
Sweden |
|
| Thailand |
Switzerland |
|
| Tonga |
Tajikistan |
|
| Trinidad and Tobago |
Tanzania |
|
| Tunisia |
Thailand |
| Turkey | |
Trinidad and Tobago |
| Uganda | |
Tunisia |
| Ukraine | |
Turkey |
| United Arab Emirates | |
Uganda |
| United States | |
Ukraine |
| Uzbekistan | |
United Arab Emirates |
| Vietnam | |
United States |
| Zambia | |
Uruguay |
|
| |
Uzbekistan |
|
| |
Vietnam |
| ||
Zambia |
| ||
Zimbabwe |
|
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which countries have had a British Council establishment opened since 1990.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Since 1990, the British Council has opened new offices for the first time in Switzerland, Rwanda, Namibia, Taiwan, and Mozambique. They also established offices in the newly independent states of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Russia, after the break-up of the Soviet Union. Following the break-up of Yugoslavia, the British Council established offices in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, the Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro and Slovenia; they also opened offices in the Czech Republic and Slovakia when they became independent states.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the situation in Central Asia with regard to the sharing of water resources in that region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Over the past year, Uzbek President Mirziyoev has discussed water and energy issues with his counterparts in Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. We expect Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan to present a resolution for the 73rd UNGA session on UN co-operation with the International Fund for the Aral Sea, on which they have worked closely with Kyrgyzstan. On 15 March Heads of State of Central Asia met in Astana and discussed the sharing of water resources. The UK has encouraged efforts to improve regional relations, including on water sharing. In November last year, UK senior officials attended a conference under UN auspices in Samarkand addressing regional water and security issues. The UK supports the World Bank's work to improve energy and water use in the region through the Central Asia Energy Water Development Programme (CAEWDP) and contributed £3.2 million to the CAEWDP multi-donor trust fund between 2011 and 2017.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January to Question 124954 on Colombia and Lesotho: Taxation, what discussions officials in her Department had with HMRC on the (a) Lesotho, (b) Columbia and (c) Kyrgyzstan tax treaties.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
Officials at the Department for International Development did not have any specific discussions with HMRC on tax treaty negotiations between the UK and Lesotho, Colombia or Kyrgyzstan.
HMRC is the lead department for the negotiation of the UK’s tax treaties, reporting to HM Treasury Ministers. HMRC seeks views from a range of interested parties, including DFID, and then takes a judgement about which countries to seek to engage with. DFID has supported this approach which led to recent successful negotiations with Colombia, Lesotho and Kyrgyzstan.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the Government of Kyrgyzstan on the case of Klara Kabilova, the chairwoman of Kyrgyzstan's Central Election Commission.
Answered by Alan Duncan
We are aware of reports concerning the citizenship and eligibility of Klara Kabilova to sit as an MP in Kyrgyzstan. We have not made representations about this specific case but our Embassy in Bishkek has regular meetings with the Kyrgyz government at all levels and routinely discusses issues of mutual interest, including progress on democratisation, fundamental values and human rights.