10 Mar 16. Defence Committee – Oral Evidence Session: Washington DC, UK Military Operations in Syria and Iraq.
Thursday 17 March 2016
The Ballroom, British Embassy, Washington DC
This is the next oral evidence session for the Committee’s inquiry into UK military operations in Syria and Iraq. The Committee will seek to examine:
• The military and political strategy to counter DAESH;
• The nature and capability of DAESH and Syrian Opposition; and:
• The impact of other external actors engaged in the conflict.
Witnesses:
At 10.00am
• Dr Fred Kagan, Resident fellow, American Enterprise Institute
• General Jack Keane (Retd), Chairman of the Board, Institute for the Study of War
At 11.00am
• Charles Lister, Resident Fellow, Middle East Institute
• Michael Eisenstadt, Kahn Fellow, Director, Military & Security Studies Program, The Washington Institute
Members of the public are welcome to attend subject to prior authorisation from the British Embassy. Please contact Jack Grainger () if you would like to attend.
10 Mar 16.`The Committees on Arms Export Controls (CAEC) have launched an inquiry into the use of UK-manufactured arms in the conflict in Yemen. The inquiry will look at the size of arms sales to the gulf region and ask questions about the role the trade plays in advancing UK interests there. It will also examine if weapons manufactured in the UK have been used by the Royal Saudi Armed Forces in Yemen, if any arms export licence criteria have been infringed and discuss what action should be taken in such cases.
CAEC comprises members of the Defence, Foreign Affairs, Business, Innovation and Skills and International Development Committees and was first formed in 1999. Its remit is to examine the Government’s expenditure, administration and policy on strategic exports, specifically the licensing of arms exports and other controlled goods.
Committee chairman, Chris White, said: “The defence and security industry is one of the UK’s most important exporters, however it is vital that its financial success does not come at a cost to the nation’s strategic interests. We have launched this inquiry to understand what role UK-made arms are playing in the on-going conflict in Yemen. Have the criteria set by the government for granting arms export licences in the region been respected and what should be the consequences if they have not? We will also ask if greater consideration should be given to the impact that arms sales have on the sustainable development of the regions where they are bought, and may be used, and the role the Department for International Development should play in this assessment.”
Written submissions are invited on the following issues:
• What are the UK’s strategic interests in the region and wider afield? To what extent and how are those strategic interests being advanced?
• What significance does the region play in terms of the UK defence and security industry?
• Are UK-manufactured arms being used by the Royal Saudi Armed Forces in the conflict in Yemen?
• Have there been any infringements of the UK Government’s criteria for the granting of arms export licences with regard to the use of UK-manufactured arms in Yemen? If so, what should be done as a consequence?
• Should DfID’s formal involvement in granting arms export licences be extended to consider the impact on the sustainable development of both the recipient country and countries where British arms may ultimately be used?
The deadline for written submissions is 25 March 2015
09 Mar 16. Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy – Oral Evidence. On Monday 14 March at 4.15pm in Committee Room 4A, Palace of Westminster, the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy will hold an evidence session on the National Security Strategy and the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015.
Issues covered in questioning are expected to include:
• How the National Security Strategy was created
• The UK’s