Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Ukrainian personnel his Department plans to train under Operation Interflex by the end of 2024.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Working with our partners to meet Ukraine's training requirements, it is estimated that Operation INTERFLEX will have trained more than 40,000 Ukrainian personnel by the end of 2024. The UK is committed to working with partners to meet Ukraine's training requirements now and in the future.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to use proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club to help fund the creation of an international tribunal for crimes against international humanitarian law in Ukraine.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The proceeds are not held by the UK Government. They are currently frozen in a UK bank account. In a statement announcing the sale, Roman Abramovich stated the proceeds would be donated to a new charitable foundation. A licence from the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation will be needed to move the funds to the foundation, once established. We will only issue a licence which ensures the proceeds are used for humanitarian purposes in Ukraine. Separately, we continue to engage in the Core Group established to explore options for a special tribunal on the crime of aggression.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the press release of 23 April 2024 entitled PM call with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine: 23 April 2024, whether the £500 million for Ukraine in 2024 will be drawn from the Treasury reserves.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Prime Minister has committed to providing £3bn in military support to Ukraine in 2024-25. This is part of our commitment to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence in 2030, which is fully funded with no increase in borrowing or debt.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Spring Budget 2024, whether the £2.5bn in military support for Ukraine in 2024 will be drawn from the Treasury reserves.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Prime Minister has committed to providing £3bn in military support to Ukraine in 2024-25. This is part of our commitment to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence in 2030, which is fully funded with no increase in borrowing or debt.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps, beyond expressions of support, they have taken to help to establish an international tribunal that would try those in Russia responsible for serious crimes under international humanitarian law, and what obstacles they have identified in doing so.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to holding Russia to account for its actions in Ukraine. We are actively engaging in the Core Group established by Ukraine to explore options for a Special Tribunal on the Crime of Aggression, including on the form any tribunal might take. We support exploring the creation of an internationalised tribunal, rooted in Ukraine's jurisdiction but with international elements. The creation of a special tribunal requires both establishing a sound legal basis and securing broad international support.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department are taking to ensure there are sufficient translators available to assist operation Interflex.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Specialist interpreter services for Op INTERFLEX are resourced by the Permanent Joint Headquarters Provision of Linguistic Services for UK MOD Global Operations Contract. The Contractor is meeting the requirement to supply the right number of correctly qualified interpreters.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing further support to Ukraine, in the context of the latest incursion of Russian forces in the North East of Ukraine.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The Government remains steadfast in our support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Prime Minister has been clear we will support Ukraine for as long as it takes. We have a long-established partnership with our Ukrainian friends since before Russia's illegal invasion and will continue to build on this through the historic UK-Ukraine Security Agreement, marking the start of a 100-year partnership.
We recently announced our largest-ever package of equipment to Ukraine, designed to help Ukraine defend against Russian aggression. Alongside this the Prime Minister also announced £500 million of additional funding which will be used to rapidly deliver military equipment support to the front line.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which invitations to tender in the Defence Sourcing Portal relate to the provision of (a) equipment, (b) supplies and (c) services to Ukraine; and if he will provide a breakdown of those invitations to tender by those funded by (i) the International Fund for Ukraine and (ii) other sources.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Due to the pace and sensitivity of procurement activity to support Ukraine, there has been no award of contract relating to the provision of equipment, supplies and services involving tenders in the Defence Sourcing Portal (DSP).
The Ministry of Defence has used the DSP for the publishing of Requests for Information for the International Fund for Ukraine (IFU) Urgent Bidding Rounds 2 and 3.
One contract, at a value of £3.7 million, has been let to a Ukrainian supplier.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many tenders for the provision of (a) equipment, (b) supplies and (c) services to Ukraine have been awarded to (i) Ukrainian and (ii) other suppliers since 24 February 2022; and what the value of such tenders awarded to (A) Ukrainian and (B) other suppliers is.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Due to the pace and sensitivity of procurement activity to support Ukraine, there has been no award of contract relating to the provision of equipment, supplies and services involving tenders in the Defence Sourcing Portal (DSP).
The Ministry of Defence has used the DSP for the publishing of Requests for Information for the International Fund for Ukraine (IFU) Urgent Bidding Rounds 2 and 3.
One contract, at a value of £3.7 million, has been let to a Ukrainian supplier.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether his Department is taking steps to help support civilians fleeing from (a) Vovchansk and (b) other towns near Kharkiv in the context of recent attacks in that area.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
We are deeply concerned about the current situation around Kharkiv and the ongoing attacks by Russia. UK partners on the ground are operating in this challenging context to provide support to displaced people and those affected near frontline areas, where humanitarian needs are already most severe and access to basic services is most constrained. To date, we have committed £357 million in humanitarian support to Ukraine and the region, which includes support to evacuate from frontline areas. Our partners are coordinating their efforts with the Government of Ukraine who are leading the response.
We will continue to monitor the situation around Kharkiv as it develops.