Support for Ukraine and Countering Threats from Russia — House of Commons, 2022-03-02
Topic: International Affairs
Daniel Rayne Kruger (Conservative, Centre-right): Putin thought that when he invaded Ukraine the people there would crack and that the west would split, but he was wrong. We have seen the most inspirational demonstration of courage in Ukraine and of unity in the west. That has been represented in this House since the beginning of the crisis. I personally commend the position taken by those on the Opposition Front Bench in their conduct of this crisis and thank them for it. In particular, I commend the speech made by the shadow Defence Secretary earlier, the position taken by the shadow Foreign Secretary and, indeed, by the Leader of the Opposition. It was also very good to hear the former Leader of the Opposition earlier in the debate speaking on behalf of the socialists of Russia in support of the people there opposing Putin. Putin has brought the whole House together, which is a very good thing This morning, in New York, the United Nations voted by a great majority in condemnation of Russia, with countries, including the UAE and Israel, which had abstained in previous resolutions, voting in support. It is worth recording with shame the names of those countries that supported Russia in that vote—North Korea, Syria, Eritrea, and Belarus. What a line-up! I do have some concern about the 35 countries that abstained in that vote, including our friends India and South Africa and I hope that they will come round to a more vocal condemnation in due course It is also worth recognising the decision by the Human Rights Council to establish a commission of inquiry into violations of human rights by Russian forces—by forces on all sides. I agree very strongly with my constituency neighbour, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison), who pointed out earlier that it is by holding soldiers and commanders to account for what happens on the battlefield that we will put the greatest pressure on those troops to resist the orders that they receive, to behave well and to lay down their arms and withdraw I commend the UK’s leadership on the sanctions regime. We are squeezing the windpipe of the Russian economy and its tentacles here in this country, which are many and deep because of our role as a financial centre. I do want to emphasise that not every Russian here in London is a Putinist or an oligarch; some are dissidents against the Putin regime. I am concerned about the calls we are hearing for blanket appropriations or expulsions of Russians. That is not the British way. Everybody has basic civil rights, including the right to legal representation. We must uphold the rule of law in this country I wish I had advice to give those on the Front Bench on the strategy or the way out of this conflict, but I will focus the rest of my remarks on what might be done to mitigate the horror unfolding in Ukraine. I commend the Government on their commitment to humanitarian priorities, sending 1,000 troops to the borders of Ukraine. I also commend people who are sending help, and particularly those sending money It is admirable that we are now working with the Disasters Emergency Committee. It was announced today that we have set up a new fund and are committing £20 million to it to match the donations made by the British people. That is a better way to help refugees than by sending material support. We should send a signal that the best way to support people is financially Here at home, I commend the Government on expanding the family route and setting up the community sponsorship programme. We also need a philanthropic fund here to support those community sponsorship groups. The best thing we can do is to arrange financial support for those groups, rather than piling up blankets, toys and second-hand clothes in council buildings; I am not sure that is the best thing we could be doing at this time Of course, one thing we cannot do with philanthropy is defence spending. I end by commending the Government on their commitment to the Defence budget: 2.4% of GDP is a tremendous step. However, the fact is that we need to go further. It is great that we have invested in sub-threshold defences, but our allies are now fighting above the threshold. We need more men and women in uniform. We need more tanks and armoured vehicles, but they are vulnerable to being taken out from the air, so we need more cyber-defences. I am sure my right hon. Friend the Minister agrees that the conventional war is not over and we must invest further in our armed forces I commend the men and women of the Royal Welsh battlegroup, in particular the Royal Engineers, the Royal Artillery and the Royal Tank Regiment, many of them based in my constituency, who are fighting to defend NATO.