By Dominic Evans
London - British members of parliament accused the Labour government on Tuesday of breaching its own ethical guidelines on arms exports by granting licences for Hawk jet spare-part sales to Zimbabwe.
A parliamentary inquiry into strategic export controls said the licences undermined a European Union resolution on arms sales and "seems to have constituted a breach of the UK's national criteria on arms exports".
The licences were revoked in May when Britain imposed a total arms embargo on Zimbabwe, after accusing President Robert Mugabe of stirring up "conditions of crisis" in the former British colony.
The MPs from parliament's cross-party defence, foreign affairs, international development and trade and industry committees said there was also a "disturbing degree of muddle and confusion" in the granting of licences to Zimbabwe over the last two years.
They argued that Zimbabwe should have been taken off a list of permitted destinations for arms exports much earlier.
Foreign Secretary Robin Cook came under fire earlier this year over the Hawk contracts because of Zimbabwe's involvement in fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Critics said the sales violated a government pledge not to sell arms that could be used for internal repression or external aggression.
Opposition Conservatives stepped up their attacks when Mugabe ignored international calls to crack down on violent occupations of white-owned farms in Zimbabwe.
"Many were appalled when Labour granted licences for Hawk spare parts to Zimbabwe, despite evidence showing that those planes were being used in the violent and bloody military adventure in the Congo," said Conservative foreign affairs spokesman Francis Maude.
"This latest report will consign Labour's 'ethical' foreign policy to the growing scrapheap of their broken promises," said Maude.
Foreign Office Minister Peter Hain denied the government had breached arms sales criteria.
"We are confident that our case-by-case approach (to licence approvals) was the right way of dealing with the situation as it was at the time. When the internal situation worsened, we acted quickly to impose a full embargo,"said Hain.
The MPs said there should be a system of prior parliamentary scrutiny for arms licenses.
They also called for clearer interpretation of a 1989 EU embargo on arms sales to China. - Reuters