Western Balkans Summit

Lord Wallace of Tankerness Excerpts

Wednesday 4th July 2018 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Wallace of Tankerness]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what outcomes they hope to achieve from the Western Balkans Summit in London on 10 July 2018.

[Baroness Goldie (Con)]

My Lords, the Western Balkans Summit will be a demonstration of the Government’s long-standing commitment to the region and to European security. The summit will focus on three areas: first, regional security, where we hope to increase co-operation against common threats, including corruption and organised crime; secondly, economic stability, to improve the business environment, entrepreneurship and digital skills; and, thirdly, political co-operation, to help the region overcome legacy issues stemming from the conflicts of the 1990s.

[Lord Wallace of Tankerness (LD)]

My Lords, next week sees not only the Western Balkans Summit but the 23rd anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide. Does the Minister consider it wholly unacceptable, and a barrier to lasting peace and reconciliation, that there are people, possibly some who may even attend the summit, who still deny that genocide? How do the Government intend to challenge those who are vocal in their denial?

[Baroness Goldie]

My Lords, we are clear that the Srebrenica massacre was an act of genocide; indeed, we make that clear in our engagement in the region. We will be working with leaders from the region to address legacy issues from the conflicts of the 1990s in the context of a summit, including by supporting accountability for war crimes. The noble and learned Lord will aware that the International Criminal Tribunal and its successor, the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, have played an important role in holding to account those responsible for serious violations of international humanitarian law in the region, including at Srebrenica. We support those efforts.