To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made in response to calls from Somalia’s interim President for a speedy deployment of international peacekeepers; what discussions she has had with (a) the UK ambassador to the UN, (b) her counterparts from Security Council nations, (c) the British embassy in (i) Addis Ababa and (ii) Asmara and (d) British high commission in Nairobi. (114201)

We support regional and African Union efforts to take forward the question of a Peace Support Mission in Somalia.

We are in constant contact directly, and via our posts in the region: The United Kingdom Mission to the UN in New York; and the UK Permanent Mission to the EU in Brussels; with African and other governments addressing the situation in Somalia.

We have discussed Somalia extensively with other members of the UN Security Council, which held a formal meeting on Somalia on 10 January.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made urging Somalia’s neighbour states to respect Somali sovereignty. (114207)

We have urged all of Somalia’s neighbours to respect its sovereignty and to play a constructive role in bringing peace and stability to Somalia. We believe that the deployment of a regional force along the lines of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1725 will help to create the conditions for sustainable security in Somalia.

We have continually made it clear to all parties that we do not believe there can be an exclusively military solution to the situation in Somalia. Consequently we have consistently called for discussions to create a broad and representative government.