Peace Institute
2. Willie Rennie (North
East Fife) (LD)
To ask the Scottish Government which conflicts its new institute
for peacekeeping will aim to resolve and by when. (S6O-00320)
The Cabinet Secretary for
the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture ()
As a global citizen, Scotland aims to contribute to peace efforts
through conflict resolution with others. That is why we are
committing to establishing a peace institute by the end of 2022.
Discussions on the role and remit of the peace institute are at
an early stage. I look forward to updating Parliament once we
have developed our thinking further. I would welcome Mr Rennie’s
contribution in the development of the peace institute.
Willie Rennie
I appreciate that the institute will not have an overnight
impact, but I am interested in the work that has been done so
far, because the situation is urgent. Has there been any early
engagement with the warring factions in the Tigray war in
Ethiopia? What has been the response from the Israeli and
Palestinian
authorities? The member had a particular interest in
Afghanistan when he was a member of the Westminster Parliament.
Can he share any correspondence that he has had with the Taliban?
I must confess that I was not expecting the end of that question.
I have not been in correspondence with the Taliban, and I do not
intend to be.
The peace institute for Scotland will be one of the integral
parts of our overall framework for the Scottish council for
global affairs. Fundamental to everything that we do is our
determination to be a good global citizen. That is reflected in
our international development programme and the priority that we
give to human rights. The peace institute will contribute to
those values.
I welcome Willie Rennie’s enthusiasm and I assure him that I will
keep him updated. I am interested to hear input from Mr Rennie
and members of other parties in the development of the peace
institute.
