To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about relations with Afghanistan.

We do not have substantive dealings with the Najibullah regime, which is not supported by the majority of Afghans. We would welcome its replacement by a Government truly acceptable to the Afghan people with whom normal relations would be possible.

If the British Government are so chummy with Syria and Iran, for example, what is wrong with Afghanistan? To my knowledge, Dr. Najib's Government are not associated with terrorism—certainly, they are a revolutionary Government—but I wonder why there is not one British representative in Kabul. Could it just be that the Tory Government can never forget that the Afghan trade union movement backed the miners during the struggle—[Interruption.] That is true. The Afghan trade union movement backed the miners against the Thatcher regime. We can never forget that.

No, it has nothing to do with the miners. We have not broken off diplomatic relations wit h Afghanistan but the Najibullah regime is only there with the support of the Soviet Union. It remains unrepresentative and unacceptable to a majority of the Afghans and controls only some 20 per cent. of the territory.

Can my hon. Friend confirm that a contingent of the Afghan mujaheddin is currently serving in Saudi Arabia? Is not that a welcome development? Can he say what their role is?

I can confirm that a contingent of the Afghan mujaheddin is serving in Saudi Arabia.