Ukraine

Debate between Lord Hague of Richmond and Phillip Lee

Tuesday 13th May 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

Of course it is true. The election observation mission, which I visited last week, is satisfied with the arrangements so far in 23 of the 25 regions of Ukraine. In Donetsk and Luhansk the picture is mixed—I think this is what the hon. Gentleman is driving at—and in some parts of those two regions the legitimate civil authorities have not been able to make preparations for the elections. That remains the case with 12 days to go, so Ukraine is faced with having a presidential election in which the vast majority of people in the country will be able to take part—but not all of them, thanks to Russian intervention.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

The newly appointed chief executive of Ofgem confirmed to me this morning that in his opinion gas prices in the UK would go up if there was an interruption to the supply of gas coming through Ukraine to western Europe. In the light of that, will the Foreign Secretary confirm that extensive work is taking place within Government to model worst-case scenarios, so that we can build resilience in this nation against the unlikely event of that scenario occurring?

[Mr Hague]

Yes, the Department of Energy and Climate Change is very conscious of this issue, and my right hon. Friend the Energy and Climate Change Secretary attended the G7 Energy Ministers meeting last week. I would add only that threats to interrupt the supply, with consequences not only for Ukraine but for countries beyond Ukraine, would be a further incentive for countries across Europe to reduce their dependence on Russian supplies in the medium to long term. Russia needs to bear that in mind as well.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Hague of Richmond and Phillip Lee

Tuesday 8th April 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

The UK is not on the Commonwealth ministerial action group, as the hon. Lady knows, nor is it in our gift to determine the chair of the Commonwealth ourselves, but it was within our gift to decide to go to Sri Lanka and to raise these issues. As the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire) has just made clear, there would have been no chance of succeeding in the Human Rights Council, as we recently did, had it not been for the Prime Minister’s leadership, our presence in Sri Lanka and our willingness to show how passionate we are about what happened in the north of Sri Lanka. The Opposition’s attitude of not going to Sri Lanka would have been a terrible misjudgement.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

T3. I was pleased to read in a recent report by the Select Committee on Foreign Affairs that the Government have been developing a strategy towards the Gulf. In view of the obvious complexities of the middle east, does the Foreign Secretary agree that there is now a very good case for opening up that approach to a broader regional strategy?

Ukraine, Syria and Iran

Debate between Lord Hague of Richmond and Phillip Lee

Monday 24th February 2014 Commons Chamber

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

As others have noted, each of the countries mentioned in the statement suffers from the malign influence of the Russian state. Although I fully recognise that the Foreign Secretary must maintain relations, does he agree that our long-term approach towards Russia, and that of other European democracies, needs further thought, and that that would be greatly aided by making Europe less dependent on Russia’s mineral resources, access to which it continues to use as a geopolitical weapon?

[Mr Hague]

In our dealings with Russia, and with any other country, we should always be clear, as we are, that we support freedom, democracy and universal human rights around the world. We are committing to working with Russia in many ways, as I have described, but on energy we are also committed to a diversification of energy supplies into the country. In December I was in Baku at the inauguration of what will become a new pipeline route for gas into Europe. That diversification is strategically important.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Hague of Richmond and Phillip Lee

Tuesday 21st January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

12. What recent progress has been made on securing a comprehensive agreement with Iran on its nuclear programme.

[The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr William Hague)]

I welcome the entry into force yesterday of the Geneva joint plan of action. This agreement halts progress in Iran’s nuclear programme in return for proportionate sanctions relief, and will be implemented in parallel with the negotiations on a comprehensive agreement.

[Mr Hague]

Some encouragement should be taken, as my hon. Friend says, from the start of the negotiations and from yesterday’s agreement to begin implementing the interim deal. I must stress that a huge amount of work remains to be done to arrive at a comprehensive settlement of the nuclear issue. It will be formidably difficult to do so, but it must remain the main priority. It is too early to say whether that will be accompanied by wider changes in the foreign policy of Iran. In the meantime, we are working, step by step, on building up our bilateral relations, including two visits in recent weeks by our new chargé d’affaires.

[Dr Lee]

I welcome any progress in improving relations with the Iranian Government notwithstanding the overnight debacle surrounding the invitation to them to attend Geneva II. Does the Foreign Secretary agree that constructive Iranian involvement is required to secure a viable regional security settlement? With that in mind, does he think that Britain should adopt a Gorbachev-like approach to our engagement with reform-minded Iranian politicians, including those in power and those of the future?

[Mr Hague]

As I mentioned a moment ago, it would be extremely welcome if there were other wider and constructive changes in the foreign policy of Iran. I intend to have a telephone discussion later today with the Foreign Minister of Iran, building on our recent contact. The United Kingdom is very much in favour of engagement with Iran, but we also need to see commitment from it. It was open to Iran yesterday to say that in the Geneva II process it would support the implementation of Geneva I, which every other country is in favour of and is seeking in the talks this week, but it was not able publicly to make that commitment.

Syria

Debate between Lord Hague of Richmond and Phillip Lee

Thursday 12th September 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

The mutual consent clause refers to the outcome of the creation of a transitional Government. In our view, it should not refer to who comes to a second Geneva conference. It will be up to the regime and the opposition—the national coalition—to nominate their representatives for the conference. They will need a significant degree of freedom in doing that, but they will have to bear it in mind, when nominating their representatives, that they want a successful outcome. Mutual consent is about the outcome, not about setting preconditions on who can come.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

With reference to our ongoing humanitarian response, does the Foreign Secretary agree that the creation of a Department for International Development-funded, land-based British mobile army surgical hospital capability could play a significant part in our response to the Syrian crisis and to any future civil war that might afflict the middle east?

[Mr Hague]

Through DFID’s work, we make a huge contribution to people’s medical welfare. DFID already provides money for about 300,000 medical consultations and a wide range of medical supplies. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development is constantly reviewing and updating how best we can help. She will have heard my hon. Friend’s question.

Syria

Debate between Lord Hague of Richmond and Phillip Lee

Monday 20th May 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

There are many diplomatic moves on that, including the resolution that was carried in the United Nations General Assembly. We continue to appeal at all times for that access. This could, of course, be one of the angles explored at the Geneva conference, since it should be something on which all sides can agree, but so far the regime has proved very resistant to allowing international NGOs, for instance, uninhibited access to the areas where that is needed.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

Britain bears a heavy responsibility for the drawing of the current boundaries across the Levant, many of which did not respect traditional tribal boundaries. To what extent does the Foreign Secretary share my concerns about the potential for an overspill from the Syrian crisis across these fluid borders, especially into Jordan and Saudi Arabia?

[Mr Hague]

I share those concerns very much indeed, and that is why we are giving the assistance to Lebanon and Jordan to which I referred in my statement. I shall discuss the issue further with the Foreign Minister of Jordan on my visit there on Wednesday.

Syria

Debate between Lord Hague of Richmond and Phillip Lee

Wednesday 6th March 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

I pay tribute to the people and the Government of Jordan. Last summer, I visited the refugee reception areas just inside the Jordanian border. Since then, the numbers involved have got much larger, with more than 312,000 refugees in Jordan, most of whom reside with host communities and families but some of whom are in camps. The Jordanians have done a magnificent job and we have discussed regularly with them how we can help further. I shall meet the Foreign Minister of Jordan tomorrow and we will discuss that further.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

Although he was a ruthless and murderous individual, the late father of the current President of Syria had a reputation for doing what he said he was going to do. By contrast, his son is a fundamentally weak individual surrounded by stronger characters as advisers. To what extent does the Foreign Secretary agree that the personal weakness of the President of Syria will make a diplomatic solution unlikely, if not impossible?

[Mr Hague]

My hon. Friend is right and the situation he describes is one of the obstacles. Not only the President of Syria but other members of his family are closely involved in the power structure in Syria, including his brother. An entire system of finance, power and rewards makes up a pyramid of which President Assad is simply at the top. A political and diplomatic solution requires people much further down the pyramid to agree that it is a good idea. That makes the situation complex and is one reason why offers of negotiations by the regime are not followed up by serious negotiations. That is indeed one of the obstacles.

Syria

Debate between Lord Hague of Richmond and Phillip Lee

Monday 6th February 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

Well, it is in any case the arrangement within the European Union that countries will provide assistance to each others’ citizens if one is unable to do so, but of course the embassies of other nations are also being slimmed down, so it would be wrong for people to rely on that. I think that they should take our advice very seriously. For months we have said, “Do not stay in Syria. Do not go to Syria.” I cannot make it clearer than that. Rather than expect practical assistance, they should leave, and leave now.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

I have had the privilege of visiting Syria twice in my life: once in 1998 with a backpack on my back, and last year on a delegation ably led by my right hon. Friend the Member for Mid Sussex (Nicholas Soames). I was struck by the stark difference in access to news media within the country between the two visits. Does the Foreign Secretary agree that our foreign policy, and indeed that of all our partners abroad, should reflect that changed media environment and that the sooner the Russian and Chinese Governments understand and respect that, the better?

[Mr Hague]

Yes, I very much agree. People have access to media reports, particularly those carried by Arab satellite television channels, and what we say on our televisions and, indeed, in this House is heard and understood by many people in Syria. That is one reason why it is not possible to say to people in Syria, “There is no problem,” and that the Syrian Government are doing everything they can. The people can see that the Syrian Government are not acting in the interests of a peaceful transition in Syria, so we will continue to communicate, in many ways directly, with the people of Syria and the rest of the Arab world. There is a lesson in that for Russia and China, as my hon. Friend says.