Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that sanctions placed on Russia by (a) the UK and (b) other countries are not being circumvented by Serbia.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Russia is making extensive efforts to circumvent sanctions in order to maintain its military machine. Our focus is on stopping these critical goods from reaching Russia and deprive Russia from generating revenue to fund the war. That includes ensuring our sanctions are as effective as possible. We are coordinating closely with G7 partners on our efforts to tackle circumvention risks across a number of priority countries including Serbia, and our support has ranged from technical assistance to diplomatic engagement at all levels.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has considered re-joining the EUFOR peacekeeping mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina as part of a new security pact with the EU.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Europe's security is critical to our own and we recognise the contribution of many of the EU's military operations and missions to regional security. We see the European Union Force Bosnia and Herzegovina (EUFOR) as vital for peace and security in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). We are open to discussions about opportunities for the UK to cooperate more closely with EU missions, considering UK engagement on a case-by-case basis. We will continue to support security and stability in BiH through our bilateral contributions in support of their Euro-Atlantic aspirations.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to place sanctions on Naftna Industrija Srbije.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
On 10 January the UK designated Gazprom Neft, one of Russia's energy giants. We do not comment on future designations as this could affect their impact. We keep all evidence and potential designations under review.