Written question asked by Jeff Ennis (Labour) on Tuesday, 16 December 1997, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 18 December 1997. It was answered by Tony Lloyd (Labour) on Thursday, 18 December 1997 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will comment on the approval of an export licence for the supply to the Netherlands of shotgun ammunition intended for use in Bosnia.

Answer: Mr. Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the approval of an export licence for the supply to the Netherlands of shotgun ammunition intended for use in Bosnia. [21681] Mr. Tony Lloyd: We recently approved the export to The Netherlands of 2,500 rounds of CS gas and target-practice shotgun ammunitions for use in riot-control by Dutch UN armed forces in Bosnia. Given that the ammunition is needed to support peace-keeping activities in Bosnia and that it is important that UN forces in Bosnia, which include British troops, are able to protect themselves, we were glad to be able to approve this export as an exception to our interpretation of the EU arms embargo on the former Yugoslavia. This decision does not affect our continued support of the EU common position on arms exports to the former Yugoslavia.

Secondary information