Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current situation between Serbia and Kosovo.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

We condemned the unprovoked attack on NATO troops in northern Kosovo on 29 May and, alongside our partners, are calling on Serbia and Kosovo to take immediate steps to de-escalate and return to dialogue. The Foreign Secretary reiterated these messages when he spoke to the Kosovo Prime Minister on 8 June, as did the Prime Minister's Envoy, Lord Peach when he spoke to President Vucic on 7 June. I [Lord Ahmad] discussed the current tensions with Kosovo's Foreign Minister on 8 June.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to secure an agreement within the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe on (1) a budget, and (2) a Chair-in-Office, for 2024.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

We recognise the challenges faced by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) as a result of Russia's weaponisation of the consensus principle, including delaying critical decisions on the budget and 2024 Chair. We fully support the efforts of current Chair, North Macedonian Foreign Minister Osmani, to reach an agreement on next year's budget and to alleviate immediate financial pressures. We are also working closely with like-minded countries on options for reaching consensus on next year's chair.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to make good the reported shortfall in the budget of the Ministry of Defence, and what effect such a shortfall will have on the UK’s supply of materials to Ukraine.

Answered by Earl of Minto - Shadow Minister (Defence)

The UK Government remains steadfast in its support for Ukraine, which is funded from the Treasury Reserves and not the defence budget. In parallel, we remain absolutely committed to increasing defence spending to 2.5% of GDP as soon as economic and fiscal conditions allow.