Lords question for short debate on what assessment they have made of the political and security situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Lords question for short debate on what assessment they have made of the political and security situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

I thank all noble Lords who are participating today and acknowledge the considerable expertise and experience they bring to this debate. It is the dream team.

There are moments in international affairs when the distance between what Governments say and what they do becomes impossible to ignore. I believe we have...

I thank all noble Lords who are participating today and acknowledge the considerable expertise and experience they bring to this debate. It is the dream team.

There are moments in international affairs when the distance between what Governments say and what they do becomes impossible to ignore. I believe we have...

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, on getting this brief debate. I pay tribute to the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Peach, and Karen Pierce as envoys for the western Balkans. It was an imaginative appointment to make, and both have discharged the job with immense skill...

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, on getting this brief debate. I pay tribute to the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Peach, and Karen Pierce as envoys for the western Balkans. It was an imaginative appointment to make, and both have discharged the job with immense skill...

My Lords, I declare my interest as the former Prime Minister’s envoy to the western Balkan region. I join in congratulating the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, on gaining this short debate. I very much align myself not just with the quality of her speech but with the content.

Of course, we...

My Lords, I declare my interest as the former Prime Minister’s envoy to the western Balkan region. I join in congratulating the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, on gaining this short debate. I very much align myself not just with the quality of her speech but with the content.

Of course, we...

It is time for the UK to honour its reputation, which is very strong. We should retain our leadership role and our influence. We have done so for 30 years; now is not the time to stop.

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It is time for the UK to honour its reputation, which is very strong. We should retain our leadership role and our influence. We have done so for 30 years; now is not the time to stop.

2.59 pm

My Lords, I join in the congratulations to my noble friend Lady Helic for securing the debate. Her deep knowledge of the issue derives from her personal experience and expertise. We are also fortunate to hear today from the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Peach, who was our UK envoy...

My Lords, I join in the congratulations to my noble friend Lady Helic for securing the debate. Her deep knowledge of the issue derives from her personal experience and expertise. We are also fortunate to hear today from the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Peach, who was our UK envoy...

My Lords, if you have ever seen a ballerina stationary en pointe, you will know that, unaided, she can hold the position for only a couple of seconds. It is simply too unstable. To sustain it for longer, she must be supported by others. This, it seems to me, is...

My Lords, if you have ever seen a ballerina stationary en pointe, you will know that, unaided, she can hold the position for only a couple of seconds. It is simply too unstable. To sustain it for longer, she must be supported by others. This, it seems to me, is...

My Lords, I thank the Lord Speaker for giving me permission to speak sitting down. I am afraid that I am immobile at the moment. The expertise of the my noble friend Lady Helic in these matters is very well known. I share her concern, as do many of us,...

My Lords, I thank the Lord Speaker for giving me permission to speak sitting down. I am afraid that I am immobile at the moment. The expertise of the my noble friend Lady Helic in these matters is very well known. I share her concern, as do many of us,...

I join the chorus of congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, on bringing about this important debate. Bosnia and Herzegovina faces its gravest political turmoil since the Dayton accords, as the noble Lord, Lord Robertson, the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Peach, and the noble Baroness, Lady Anelay, amply...

I join the chorus of congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, on bringing about this important debate. Bosnia and Herzegovina faces its gravest political turmoil since the Dayton accords, as the noble Lord, Lord Robertson, the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Peach, and the noble Baroness, Lady Anelay, amply...

My Lords, on this day last week, the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, spoke powerfully in the debate on genocide and atrocity crimes, pledging support for my Genocide Determination

Bill, which will be debated on 17 July. Today, as we recall the horrific depredations of the Bosnian genocide and the massacre...

My Lords, on this day last week, the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, spoke powerfully in the debate on genocide and atrocity crimes, pledging support for my Genocide Determination

Bill, which will be debated on 17 July. Today, as we recall the horrific depredations of the Bosnian genocide and the massacre...

My Lords, during my time as Minister it was my humbling honour to serve for seven years as leading the UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict initiative, picking up the

baton from my noble friend Lady Anelay and continuing the valuable work of my noble friend Lord Hague. In thanking...

My Lords, during my time as Minister it was my humbling honour to serve for seven years as leading the UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict initiative, picking up the

baton from my noble friend Lady Anelay and continuing the valuable work of my noble friend Lord Hague. In thanking...

My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, for securing this important debate. Her continued leadership on Bosnia and Herzegovina, genocide prevention and the defence of the women, peace and security agenda around the world is of the utmost importance given the state of the world today and the...

My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, for securing this important debate. Her continued leadership on Bosnia and Herzegovina, genocide prevention and the defence of the women, peace and security agenda around the world is of the utmost importance given the state of the world today and the...

My Lords, it is easy to forget how close the Yugoslav succession crises came, during the 1990s, to destroying or at least severely damaging both the UN and NATO, not to speak of the appalling death toll culminating in the genocide of Srebrenica; and to forget how those crises ended...

My Lords, it is easy to forget how close the Yugoslav succession crises came, during the 1990s, to destroying or at least severely damaging both the UN and NATO, not to speak of the appalling death toll culminating in the genocide of Srebrenica; and to forget how those crises ended...

My Lords, many voices were raised during the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s, but it was only after Srebrenica that the world took action. I visited Bosnia shortly after the Dayton peace agreement was signed and I encountered a country traumatised by four years of war, devastated...

My Lords, many voices were raised during the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s, but it was only after Srebrenica that the world took action. I visited Bosnia shortly after the Dayton peace agreement was signed and I encountered a country traumatised by four years of war, devastated...

My Lords, I warmly thank the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, for securing this important debate and for her consistent work in keeping our attention on Bosnia and Herzegovina, and I congratulate her on her excellent speech. I think the House is speaking with a united voice.

Just as things are looking...

My Lords, I warmly thank the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, for securing this important debate and for her consistent work in keeping our attention on Bosnia and Herzegovina, and I congratulate her on her excellent speech. I think the House is speaking with a united voice.

Just as things are looking...

My Lords, this has been a very timely debate, and I congratulate my noble friend Lady Helic on securing time for it. She showed in her

powerful opening speech her immense knowledge and appreciation for the region, and I think the House benefited from that.

We have heard a number of...

My Lords, this has been a very timely debate, and I congratulate my noble friend Lady Helic on securing time for it. She showed in her

powerful opening speech her immense knowledge and appreciation for the region, and I think the House benefited from that.

We have heard a number of...

My Lords, I am extremely grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, for securing this debate, and I appreciate the discussions that we have had in advance of it. Not only has she secured this debate but she has kept the western Balkans, particularly Bosnia, front of mind for all...

My Lords, I am extremely grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, for securing this debate, and I appreciate the discussions that we have had in advance of it. Not only has she secured this debate but she has kept the western Balkans, particularly Bosnia, front of mind for all...

The leadership of the Republika Srpska, the majority-Serb territory within Bosnia and Herzegovina, has adopted an assertive separatist stance viewed as endangering the 1995 peace agreement.

The leadership of the Republika Srpska, the majority-Serb territory within Bosnia and Herzegovina, has adopted an assertive separatist stance viewed as endangering the 1995 peace agreement.

The constitution for Bosnia and Herzegovina was set out in the 1995 Dayton Agreement. It is a single state comprising a predominantly Bosniak-Croat political entity, and a Serb-majority entity.

The constitution for Bosnia and Herzegovina was set out in the 1995 Dayton Agreement. It is a single state comprising a predominantly Bosniak-Croat political entity, and a Serb-majority entity.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking with international counterparts to ensure the protection of the rights of minority ethnic Bosniaks living in Republika Srpska.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking with international counterparts to ensure the protection of the rights of minority ethnic Bosniaks living in Republika Srpska.