Western Balkans

Lord Swire Excerpts

Wednesday 10th September 2014 Westminster Hall

[The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Mr Hugo Swire)]

I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Sir John Randall) on securing the debate. As he said, my right hon. Friend the Minister for Europe would have been delighted to respond, but he is currently travelling on ministerial duties. It is therefore my pleasure to respond on behalf of the Government.

I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip for his long-term interest in and contribution to our relations with the western Balkans. I thank the all-party parliamentary groups for their important role in building links with the region. He said that he had not prepared a speech; clearly, he did not need to. Perhaps if more Members spoke from knowledge and from the heart, as he did this morning, rather than just reading out prepared scripts, this place would be all the better for it. He is steeped in the Serbo-Croat language and literature and knows what he is talking about, which can, in this place, be both dangerous and place him in an almost unique position.

The UK’s relationship with the western Balkans is long and deep, as we have heard from both sides of the House. We reflected on that relationship this summer, as we commemorated the centenary of the outbreak of the first world war. The fact that, in effect, the first shots of the war rang out in Sarajevo, as we all know, reminds us why the stability and security of that region are so important to our country and the world.

My right hon. Friend has given valuable support to the commemoration activity. He alluded to the role played by Flora Sandes, Britain’s pioneering combatant in the war, and I much enjoyed the reasons he gave for the throwing of grenades, from the previous training as a shepherd. I am particularly pleased that my Department will be involved in touring the play, which I believe is coming over to the UK.

The hon. Member for Harrow West (Mr Thomas), who speaks for the Opposition, mentioned Srebrenica, as did others. How could we debate the western Balkans without mentioning it? I hope that my right hon. Friend, when he has more time, will travel to Srebrenica. My hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood (Eric Ollerenshaw), again, in a very inspiring and knowledgeable speech, alluded to the expertise and knowledge that he had gained from travelling there on a number of occasions. He also mentioned the Fund for Refugees in Slovenia—of which I still, I should declare, remain a trustee—and the work of the founder of the fund, Lady Nott, who he said I know well. Actually, I know Lady Nott so well that she woke me up this morning—before the salacious gossip mongers and writers get too excited about that, I should also confess that she is, in fact, my mother-in-law. She has done a remarkable job and continues to do so.

I also pay tribute to the fact that we now recognise the charity Remembering Srebrenica and we are doing more, on an annual basis, to remember the horrors that went on. The Fund for Refugees still does incredibly good work without any Government resource in rebuilding the shattered communities around Srebrenica. It is all privately funded. I have never quite understood why we do not fund it, but I am not allowed to go down that road really. I urge the shadow Minister and, indeed, my right hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, when they go to Srebrenica, to see some of the work that the fund has done in trying to plant orchards and rebuild communities, very often without men, because the men are simply not there. It has done a remarkable job and I am most grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood for raising it, as I know he has been a stalwart supporter of it.

My hon. Friend mentioned the issue of moderate Muslims in that part of the world, which is a key point. I think that there is evidence of some radicalisation now taking place, and that needs to be looked at and stamped out very quickly indeed.

The need for stability in the western Balkans remains a crucial priority today. The UK has, for two decades, been a providing a significant contribution to that, along with our NATO and EU allies. We demonstrated our commitment with our swift response to the devastating floods in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina earlier this year. The UK provided the team leader for the EU-wide civil protection response, other experts for the broader EU effort and emergency equipment, including radios and vehicles. In addition, at the recent international donors’ conference, the UK pledged an initial £2 million bilaterally for reconstruction work—the sort of work that the hon. Member for Harrow West will be familiar with from his time as a Minister of State in the Department for International Development.

It is, however, sadly too soon to say that the western Balkans have achieved the irreversible stability and prosperity that the people of the region deserve. Many challenges remain—we have heard about them this morning—from corruption, weak governance and shaky institutions to a lack of the rule of law in some places. Security is not yet entrenched, and, as is obvious from the nationalist rhetoric and Republika Srpska’s secessionist aspirations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, that remains the case there. Those are their challenges but our concerns. The security and stability of the Balkans and the rest of Europe are interdependent. Neither containment nor neglect are the answer. That is why we are proactive in helping the Governments in the region to try to tackle those issues through political and economic reform.

The hon. Gentleman mentioned the EU. The EU and NATO accession processes are the best means to drive that reform and are the only source, frankly, of long-term stability in the region. Although we have seen significant progress in the past few years, not least in Croatia’s accession to the EU in 2013, the integration of the region into Euro-Atlantic structures remains unfinished. There is work to be done. The UK is committed to supporting the further enlargement of the EU with all the western Balkans, on the basis of firm but fair conditionality.

The hon. Gentleman talked about future legislation to do with population changes, which is a very topical subject here in the United Kingdom at the moment. The conditionality that I referred to must also help ensure that future enlargements will not lead to mass migrations. It is clear that transitional controls on free movement for future enlargements cannot be done, as was done in the past. We want to start a debate in the EU about what new arrangements might look like, but they must be robust and command public confidence.

[Mr Thomas]

Will the Minister set out what he or the Government see those new transitional arrangements looking like? I appreciate that he wants a debate, but to have a debate, one needs to have an initial idea. What is the Government’s idea?

[Mr Swire]

My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister said that he will not agree to any new member state joining the EU until new transitional controls are in place, and that would represent something new and important. We have worked hard with our European partners to ensure that the previous weaknesses of the enlargement processes are addressed with rigorous and early action on rule of law failures. We will sustain and intensify our work to ensure that the principle of freedom of movement is not abused. I hope that, in that work and with that change, we will get the support of Her Majesty’s loyal Opposition.

[Mr Thomas]

We would be very interested in supporting the Government, but we would like to know what they are proposing. The Minister has given—I say this gently, as this has been a very good debate up to now—a rather general response. It would be helpful to have a little more specific detail on what the Government are proposing to talk about with our European colleagues.

[Mr Swire]

Of course, the details will be unrolled as we begin our negotiations, but if we can bank it, as a starting point, that the Opposition will agree in principle that new transitional controls must be in place for any new member state to join the EU, that will be something we can take to Europe.

[Sir John Randall]

Something that we can discuss and that I often hear about is that businesses and important people coming over still have problems getting visas. Although I would be absolutely onside with the arrangements that we hope to have when new countries come into the EU, the existing ones on visas should be smartened up a bit; otherwise it does not say much to those important people we are trying to get to come over. The reason may be cultural; it may be sporting; it is certainly business; and there is a problem.

[Mr Swire]

Indeed. This issue is raised with us across the Department from all parts of the world; it is not unique to the western Balkans. I think that, on the whole, our visa processes are improving.

Against the background that I have set out, I welcome the start of EU accession negotiations with Serbia earlier this year. Much has been achieved during the past 15 years, but there is much left to do. The UK supports Serbia’s reforms and, in particular, its media reform. Progress has been made in Serbia-Kosovo relations, but there remain major challenges, not least in the economic sphere and in relations with its neighbours.

I pay tribute to the courageous steps taken by both Serbia and Kosovo to improve their relationship. The agreement between the two countries in April 2013 was an historic moment for reconciliation. Both sides must now ensure, though, that the agreement is not just written on paper but turned into practice, so that it can lead to the full normalisation of relations through the EU-facilitated dialogue.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, who sponsored this debate, asked in relation to Kosovo what had been done to address the situation of displaced Serbs, including those still living in containers. We very much agree that that is an important issue, both from a humanitarian point of view and for long-term reconciliation. This Government remain the biggest bilateral donor supporting the Kosovo Serbs. I will write to my right hon. Friend about the specific issue that he raised about whether sacred monuments in Kosovo are still being guarded. That, of course, is a subject close to my heart. We will find out what the latest on that is and write to him.

Before I move on properly to Kosovo, I want to return briefly to Serbia. We must encourage Serbia to continue to play an increasingly positive role in the region, and I urge Belgrade to do more, particularly when it serves as chair of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe next year. That is a real opportunity for it. We strongly urge Serbia to align more closely with EU member states on key foreign policy issues, especially the one that is now very pregnant: relations with Russia and the whole situation in Ukraine.

I shall revert now to Kosovo. The shadow Minister asked about Kosovo and the EU. We hope that Kosovo will also start on its own EU path shortly, with the signature of a stabilisation and association agreement. That will allow the EU to intensify discussions on reforms, so helping to build a Kosovo with a prosperous future for all its communities and minorities. In the meantime, we will encourage Kosovo to make progress on the normalisation of its relationship with Serbia.

In this tour d’horizon of the region, I now move effortlessly across to Montenegro. I welcome the recent efforts in Montenegro—for example, in aligning itself with EU positions on Ukraine, despite significant pressure from Russia. Montenegro, like Serbia, has responded positively to the incentives of the EU enlargement plan, and we are encouraged by the progress being made as part of the EU accession process. However, let us be in no doubt. There remain many challenges—in particular, progressing Montenegro’s work against organised crime and corruption—but we commend the strong progress that it is making towards joining NATO. Last week’s successful NATO summit in Wales confirmed our intention to initiate focused and intensified talks.

I come now to Albania. I have always been rather fascinated by Albania since I came across a history of Albania written by—I do not know whether he was a kinsman of mine—J. Swire, a big red book, which I have yet to read. In fact, I am meant to be lending it to the former high commissioner to Australia, who has now gone to Rome and who looks after Albania. I promised that I would lend him the book. J. Swire went out to Albania, I think, as a tutor—to a young King Zog, I should imagine. Albania has always held a fascination for me, and I am pleased to say that Albania, too, is making progress now. The new Government are serious about strengthening the rule of law, with a major plan to tackle organised crime, corruption and judicial reform. In the first half of 2014, there were major police operations against drugs and a 70% increase in arrests for human trafficking.

I think that I am right in saying that my right hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip has just been to Albania—

[Sir John Randall]

indicated assent.

[Mr Swire]

That was with our friend and former colleague, Anthony Steen, who has done so much to help the Government on human trafficking. Some of the Northern Irish MPs spoke earlier about what is going on in Northern Ireland now, and I was pleased, when I was a Northern Ireland Minister, to take Anthony Steen over to Northern Ireland, where an all-party group on trafficking was set up at Stormont. I pay tribute to the work that he continues to do.

[Sir John Randall]

May I give a little plug for the fact that we are still trying to get human trafficking groups set up around Europe and are always on the lookout for some funding from the Foreign Office?

[Mr Swire]

A point well made.

The issues to which I referred have an impact on the UK, and we are a leading supporter of Albania’s efforts to combat them. For example, we have signed memorandums of understanding with Albania on information sharing, and in July of this year our embassy in Tirana funded a border police processing and debriefing facility. That doubled capacity at Tirana airport for returns of failed asylum seekers and other irregular migrants, and it sends a clear message that the UK is serious about cutting back on illegal migration from Albania.

Although there is much progress in the western Balkans, we must ensure that the whole region is moving forward, and worryingly that cannot be said at the moment of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The country faces constitutional paralysis and ethnic division through a lack of reforms and economic stagnation. Bosnia’s politicians owe it to their people to provide jobs and prosperity. Instead, they keep them hostage to nationalist rhetoric, which is a cover for their failure to meet ordinary citizens’ aspirations. In addition, the daily challenges to Bosnia’s sovereignty by the openly secessionist leadership in the entity of Republika Srpska are on the increase. We are clear: the redrawing of borders in the western Balkans is finished, so we urge political leaders there to respond fully to the EU’s offer of support and to heed legitimate calls from the Bosnian population. The upcoming elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina will be an important opportunity for those voices to be heard.

The United Kingdom stands ready, with our EU partners, to support the process. Our contribution to Bosnia’s stability already provides foundations for the country to build on. We play a significant role in the EUFOR peacekeeping mission in Bosnia, increasing UK troop numbers this year in response to violent protests in February.

We also urge further reforms on Macedonia. We continue to be strong supporters of Macedonia’s EU and NATO future, but the country must take urgent, decisive action to address growing shortcomings in its democratic institutions and processes, judicial independence and media freedom. We continue to encourage both sides to work on the issue of the name.

In summary, some western Balkan countries are successfully rising to the many challenges that they face, but others are lagging behind and must do more to ensure that the whole region can move forward together. We want a strong and flourishing region on the EU’s doorstep, not one that fuels crime, corruption or trafficking or is a source of instability and insecurity. Our national interest, historical links with the region and long relationship are there to be built on, and we are determined to do that.

I am genuinely sorry to be losing my right hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip as a colleague at the next general election. As he said, we served together in the Whips Office. Parliament will lose a valuable Member, but perhaps Parliament’s loss will be Randall of Uxbridge’s gain. I thank him again. I commend the interest and work on both sides of the House, but particularly that done by my right hon. Friend in helping to strengthen those links.