Category: Foreign Affairs

James Cleverly – 2023 Speech at the UN High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development

The speech made by James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary, in New York on 17 July 2023.

In 2015, 193 countries agreed the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. This was a landmark multilateral achievement, to chart our course towards a fairer, healthier and more prosperous world by 2030.

Yet today at the halfway point, we are on course to miss a staggering 88% of the targets that we set.

This is clearly unacceptable. We cannot continue with business as usual if we are to end poverty, improve health and education, increase prosperity, or slow climate change.

But if we act together, we can still get the SDGs back on track. So what do we need to do?

My top priority is reforming development finance – and targeting it to areas which will accelerate progress, like food security, health, renewable energy, and the empowerment of women and girls.

This is not my idea. It’s what my fellow foreign ministers from developing countries tell me that we need to do. That’s why the UK supports the ambitions of Mia Mottley’s Bridgetown Initiative.

We need Multilateral Development Banks to free up trillions more for developing countries by implementing the G20’s independent review on Capital Adequacy Frameworks.

We need more private sector investment, particularly in clean energy, water and sanitation, and climate-resilient infrastructure.

We need all creditors to offer Climate-Resilient Debt Clauses, to pause loan repayments when disasters strike – as the UK Export Finance is doing in 12 African and Caribbean countries.

And we must ensure developing countries have strong public finances through better tax collection and tackling of illicit financial flows.

Our international financial system needs to become more responsive to shocks – so we can help poorer and smaller countries – especially those at risk of natural disasters – to sustain development gains and to prevent roll backs.

We cannot stop floods, we cannot stop droughts, we cannot stop hurricanes. But we can stop the economic crises and debt spirals that they cause.

I recognise that the UK doesn’t have all the answers. But we are committed to working with all our partners to urgently accelerate progress towards the SDGs over the next 7 years.

All of us need to recommit to the Sustainable Development Goals at the upcoming Summit at UNGA in September. Because we will need political will and partnership to forge bigger, better, fairer international financial systems which meets today’s development needs.

And we can translate our joint political ambitions into concrete reforms through the G20, World Bank, IMF and at COP28.

It is time for us to go further and faster. Let us seize the opportunity.

Thank you.

July 25, 2023
James Cleverly – 2023 Speech at the United Nations Security Council

The speech made by James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary, in New York, United States, on 17 July 2023.

More than 500 days have now passed since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

At least nine thousand innocent civilians lie dead – including 500 children. Thousands more Ukrainians have been kidnapped, imprisoned and tortured.

Homes, businesses, schools and hospitals have been reduced to rubble.

Russia’s incessant attacks have knocked out 60% of Ukraine’s power supply.

This war has claimed countless victims.

I’m going to focus on those who have been forcibly deported in this war – and those who are going hungry as a result of it.

In Kyiv last month I met a teenage boy – I’ll call him Denys.

When the Russians captured his home town, they told Denys and his classmates that they were going on a holiday.

They were in fact transported to a Russian camp where they were neglected, indoctrinated and abused.

Denys’ distraught mother was desperately searching for him.

But the Russians pretending to look after Denys and countless others told him his parents had abandoned him.

This boy’s ordeal lasted for 7 months before his mother – thanks to the charity Save Ukraine – found him and brought him home.

But 19,000 Ukrainian children remain in Russian camps – and their parents are desperately searching for them.

A further 2½ million Ukrainian men and women have been deported to Russia.

These are barbaric crimes. Russia is trying to erase Ukrainian identity and cultural history. And they are using children as an instrument of war.

But the world is watching and Russia will be held accountable. We welcome the International Criminal Court’s investigation. And we will leave no stone unturned until the responsible are brought to justice.

Ukrainians are Russia’s principal victims. But this war is also harming the poor and the vulnerable across the world – particularly in Africa, in Asia and in Latin America.

Energy prices rocketed by 20% worldwide last year – almost doubling global inflation from 4.7% to 8.7%.

World food supplies have fallen sharply.

Ukrainian food exports – maize, barley or wheat – have plummeted by more than 40%.

With catastrophic consequences for Sub-Africa which relies on these supplies.

Food prices are rocketing – by a staggering 332% in Lebanon last summer.

Some of these losses were offset by the Black Sea Grain Initiative – brokered by the UN Secretary-General and Turkey.

But today Russia has announced it is refusing to extend it and is taking a colossal 23 million tonnes of Ukrainian food off of world markets over the forthcoming year.

As the UN Secretary General said this morning: “Today’s decision by the Russian Federation will strike a blow to people in need everywhere”. We call on Russia to return to the table and agree to extend the Black Sea Grain Initiative indefinitely – and to implement it fully without delay.

Let us be clear – Russia’s actions are taking food out of the mouths of the poorest people across Africa, the Middle East and Latin America.

We cannot allow this war to go on for another 500 days.

The UN General Assembly has called – repeatedly – for peace.

A peace that is based on the principles of the UN Charter and our shared belief that might does not equal right.

President Zelensky’s 10-point peace plan shows the way forward.

Ukraine wants peace. We want peace. The whole world wants peace.

Peace will bring home Ukraine’s lost children – and feed the hungry of the world.

Peace will keep the promises we all made in the UN Charter.

Peace will pave the way to a reformed multilateral system.

Peace will help deliver the Sustainable Development Goals.

A just and lasting peace is what we all want.

The Russian Federation can choose peace – today. By withdrawing all Russian forces from Ukraine.

Mr Putin – bring your troops home. End this war now.

July 25, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : Annual Progress Report on the OSCE Gender Action Plan – UK statement [July 2023]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 13 July 2023.

Deputy Ambassador Brown thanks Secretary General Helga Schmid for presenting the Annual Progress Report on the Implementation of the OSCE 2004 Gender Action Plan.

Thank you, Secretary General, for your presentation of the Annual Progress Report to the Permanent Council today.

As you mention in your Report, gender equality, empowering women in politics, and combatting all forms of violence against women and girls are crucial to the OSCE’s comprehensive concept of security and stability. We appreciate the work of the organisation to ensure a gender perspective is included in all aspects of peace processes and conflict resolution, including in mediation.

The UK recognises the exceptional challenges faced by the organisation in promoting gender equality during the 2022 reporting period. Horrific levels of conflict-related sexual violence are being perpetrated in the OSCE region through Russia’s illegal and unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine – as documented in successive Moscow Mechanism reports. There has been an alarming increase in reports of gender-based violence in temporarily Russian controlled areas – including abuse and harassment, sexual exploitation and economic abuse. At the same time, women are often the first responders to conflict. In Ukraine, women have been essential to the effective humanitarian, political, and security efforts in the defence of their country.

In this difficult political and regional context, the OSCE has delivered some excellent initiatives during the reporting period to promote gender equality. In particular, I would like to highlight the OSCE’s work in building women’s leadership in peace processes and conflict resolution, and targeted support and lifesaving assistance to women in Ukraine. The launch of the first OSCE Women Peace Leadership Programme was an important step in strengthening meaningful participation in peacebuilding. We commend initiatives such as the OSCE WIN programme bringing together human rights defenders from Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina, sharing best practice on accountability and protection of survivors.

The OSCE continues to have a key role to play in implementing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda. We appreciate the ongoing work of the OSCE field operations in supporting participating States in developing and implementing National Action Plans, including the examples in Serbia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan highlighted in the Report. The UK will continue to make efforts to improve our own record on WPS – including through increasing representation of women in our diplomatic, development, security and defence fields. As we know from hard-earned experience, the full, equal, meaningful and safe participation of women – in all their diversity, and at all levels of decision-making and leadership – leads to better outcomes during and after conflicts.

The UK is also pleased to note the progress made towards achieving gender parity in some – though not all – staff categories across the OSCE, and the launch of new initiatives focused on recruitment practices and standards of conduct. We were pleased to be able to support, through extrabudgetary funding, the development of staff training modules on Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA), supporting the Staff Instruction on PSEA issued last year.

Secretary General, I would like to thank once again all those who contributed to advancing gender equality and the WPS agenda in the OSCE over the reporting period. In particular, I would like to extend my warmest congratulations to the Gender Equality Champions of 2022. This recognition of your key roles in promoting gender equality across the OSCE region is well-deserved.

Mr Chair, on behalf of the UK I would like to thank North Macedonia for your continued focus on gender equality as Chair this year, as well as Poland for their efforts during 2022. It is essential that gender continues to be fully integrated into this organisation’s work.

Thank you, Mr Chair.

July 24, 2023
Rishi Sunak – 2023 Statement to Leaders at NATO Summit in Lithuania

The statement made by Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, in Lithuania on 12 July 2023.

This summit stands out as a landmark in NATO’s long history.

We arrived here faced with a more volatile and dangerous world…

A mechanised war in Europe on a scale not seen since 1945…

And increasing aggression from authoritarian states, challenging our security in Europe and beyond.

But as we leave Vilnius, we are more confident and more united than ever.

Let me set out three reasons why that’s the case.

First, we’ve acted decisively to strengthen this alliance.

Agreeing the most fundamental transformation to NATO’s readiness since the Cold War…

Comprehensive warfighting plans to defend the UK and its allies…

Scaled up defence production to boost our stockpiles, which will benefit British industry…

And increased defence spending…

…with all allies now committed to hitting the 2% target.

And we did something here in Vilnius that not long ago seemed impossible…

We welcomed Finland to the table as a NATO member…

….and very soon we’ll be doing the same with Sweden.

We are stronger with them by our side… and in time we will be stronger with Ukraine as a NATO ally too.

This is my second point…

It is now over 500 days since Russia’s invasion.

500 days of barbarity.

Of innocent people being murdered in their homes.

Of children being killed, abducted and used as human shields.

I want to pay tribute to the Ukrainian people and to their incredible bravery and resilience.

They’re still standing strong and defiant… and the counteroffensive is making progress.

In the last few weeks, they’ve taken back more ground than Russia has taken in the last year.

We are standing with them…

…and allies are doubling down in their support.

At the Munich Security Conference in February, I called for long-term security arrangements…

…to protect Ukraine, break the cycle of Russian violence, and ultimately help to end this war.

And today we have delivered.

Together with our G7 partners we have agreed to provide the long-term bilateral security commitments that Ukraine needs.

These commitments mark a new high point in international support for Ukraine.

And I want to be clear, they are not a substitute for NATO membership.

The summit communique echoes the UK’s long-held position that “Ukraine’s future is in NATO.”

And we’ve taken a big step this week towards bringing Ukraine into the alliance.

Together we’ve shortened their path to membership…

…removing the need for a Membership Action Plan…

…and holding the first meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council with President Zelenskyy sitting at the table, by our side, as an equal.

Finally, I‘d like to say a word about the UK’s role here.

I was struck once again this week by just how highly valued our contribution is.

The British people should know that – and they should be proud.

We are the leading European contributor to NATO.

We were one of the first to hit the 2% target and now we’re moving towards 2.5%.

We spend more than 20 other NATO countries combined, but it’s about much more than that.

It’s about our incredible Armed Forces across land, air and sea.

We’re one of the only countries that contributes to every NATO mission with RAF jets patrolling the eastern flank…

Troops on the ground in Estonia and Poland as part of NATO’s enhanced forward presence…

And the Royal Navy, including our two aircraft carriers, providing around a quarter of NATO’s maritime capability.

It’s about our deep partnerships…

With Japan and Italy we’re producing a sixth-generation fighter through our Global Combat Air Program…

…and with AUKUS, we’re working with Australia and the US to build some of the most advanced nuclear-powered submarines the world has ever known.

And it’s about leadership.

We’ve led the way on Ukraine… moving first on tanks and long-range missiles… training their troops for the counter-offensive.

Just today I’ve announced we’re providing more ammunition, 70 more combat vehicles, as well as a new rehabilitation centre for injured Ukrainian veterans.

We’re moving forward with the combat air coalition…

…and the UK starts training Ukrainian pilots next month.

And we’re using our leadership in technology to keep NATO at the cutting edge…

Hosting the European Headquarters of the Defence Innovation Accelerator in the UK…

…and holding the first global summit on AI Safety later this year.

The UK has been there since the start of this alliance.

In 1948, in the hope of avoiding another devastating war, we joined together with a handful of allies…

…to pledge that we would come to one another’s defence.

That pact was the seed of the North Atlantic Treaty.

75 years later, faced with new threats in Europe, NATO is more important than ever.

It has proved itself to be the most successful Alliance in history…

…and this week we’ve shown once again that the UK is at its heart.

Thank you.

July 24, 2023
Andrew Mitchell – 2023 Speech at the Towards the Global Refugee Forum

The speech made by Andrew Mitchell, the Minister for Development and Africa, on 12 July 2023.

Good morning.

I am sorry not to be able to join you at Wilton Park, where I trust there have been lots of lively discussions over the last few days. However, I do want to thank you all for coming to be a part of this important conversation. I extend particular thanks to our friends at the World Bank for their support for this event. Also to UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), and to those who have travelled considerable distances to join us.

It is fitting that this, the year of the second UN Global Refugee Forum (GRF), also marks the halfway moment of the Sustainable Development Goals – a moment when we are all thinking more than ever about what it truly means to ‘leave no one behind’. It is this spirit which animates so much of the global effort to support those who have been forced to flee their homes.

This support to refugees would not be possible without the work of our partners at UNHCR, or the generosity and dedication of those countries hosting large refugee populations. We are very pleased to have some of these states represented at this conference, and I commend them for their efforts.

However, we are all too aware that the challenge of meeting even basic needs for forcibly displaced people is getting harder. The trends are against us, with total displacement climbing in 2022 to over 108 million people, including nearly 40 million refugees. These are truly sobering figures, but there are things we can do.

First, we can work together across sectors and geographies to tackle the root causes of displacement.

From Sudan to Ukraine, we’ve seen in the last year alone the extent to which armed conflict and violence drive displacement. Alongside other members of the international community, the UK has been proud to provide emergency humanitarian assistance in these contexts and around the world. But we must all redouble our efforts to support and sustain peace, in order to enable the safe return of refugees to their homes.

I am also aware that I am speaking when climate migration and displacement is no longer a hypothetical, but a reality. We cannot afford to ignore accelerating climate impacts such as drought and environmental degradation. And as the threat of climate change increases globally, the number having to leave their homes will continue to grow.

And yet, there are reasons for hope. From the Bridgetown agenda to COP (Conference of the Parties), the world is coming together to address this existential threat and protect the most vulnerable from its impacts.

It is all of our responsibility to make sure that forcibly displaced people are included in this conversation. This includes using all the possibilities afforded by international fora, such as COP28, to ensure that we are not working in silos.

The UK is acting to mobilise climate funding that will address the underlying climate-related drivers of humanitarian crises. This will increase the supply of, and access to, the climate finance that vulnerable countries need. We are, in fact, very pleased to be hosting an event at Wilton Park, on the subject next week.

Secondly, we can put those who bear the brunt of displacement at the centre of our approach to solutions. The UK is proud to champion the rights of women and girls around the world.

A core principle of this is ensuring access to 12 years of quality education. Education for displaced girls in emergencies or conflict settings is a powerful tool. It is one of the best mechanisms for protecting them from gender-based violence and it gives them the tools to rebuild their home communities when they are able to return. It can maximise the potential of educated populations for addressing the climate crisis, and for promoting peace and tolerance.

But this is about hosting countries, as well as refugees. We know that delivering this education through national systems will also benefit host community children, as investment in their education systems makes these systems more resilient, and more sustainable. This will ensure that strong education provision is left behind when refugees can return home. As a proud champion of girls’ education, the UK is excited to be driving forwards an education multi-stakeholder pledge at this year’s GRF.

Thirdly, we can help refugees contribute to their host communities. By supporting refugees’ freedom of movement and right to work, we enable their agency. And, in the words of the Global Compact on Refugees, we enhance their self-reliance.

These mutually reinforcing benefits cannot be realised without both the right policy environment, and a strong enabling environment made possible through development. Including refugees in national systems and national planning is central to this.

We all recognise the potential of the GRF to be a moment that galvanises meaningful change. That transforms the lives of both forcibly displaced people and their host communities. To fulfil these ambitions, how we use the next 6 months is vitally important.

In my recent speech at Chatham House, I launched the UK’s new development platform, UKDev, which at its heart is about partnerships: partnerships with donor countries, partnerships with recipient countries, and partnerships across the sector. We must harness a wide range of actors to engage in the GRF. We must be clear in our intent, consistent in our approach, and strategic about our priorities. Above all, we must work together.

I look forward to hearing the results of your discussions and to working together over the coming months to realise our common ambitions for the GRF.

Thank you very much.

July 17, 2023
Vladimir Putin – 2023 Comments on the Death of Silvio Berlusconi

IMPORTANT NOTE. The text of these comments from the Russian President are for informational purposes. Under Putin’s leadership, the country of Russia has started a war on the country of Ukraine and he is currently being investigated for war crimes.

The comments made by Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, on 12 June 2023.

Pavel Zarubin: Mr President, hello.

Excuse me, can I have just a minute of your time, please? Right before the ceremony [for presenting the Hero of Labour medals and the Russian Federation National Awards], tragic news arrived on the passing of Silvio Berlusconi. You had special friendly ties with him. Can I ask you for a few words about his role in Russian-Italian relations and in global politics?

President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Yes. He was indeed a politician of European, and it can be said, of global scale. There are few people like him in the international arena nowadays. He was a good friend of our people and did a lot to develop business-like and friendly relations between Russia and the European countries.

He initiated relations between Russia and the North Atlantic Alliance. It was with his assistance and on his initiative that respective interaction mechanisms were created.

But he was primarily Italy’s politician, of course. He was an unusual person for a politician because he was very sincere and open-hearted. He also had a privilege that politicians of this scale lack – the privilege of saying what he meant.

I am very sorry. I want to express heartfelt sorrow and condolences to Italian people and all of Mr Berlusconi’s family and friends. It is a great loss not only for Italy but also for global politics.

June 16, 2023
Rishi Sunak – 2023 Opening Remarks at the White House

The opening remarks made by Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, in the United States on 8 June 2023.

Thank you, Mr President –

Before I begin my remarks – a word if I may on what happened in France this morning.

All our thoughts are with those affected by this unfathomable attack, including a British child and with their families.

I’ve been in touch with President Macron.

And we stand ready to offer any assistance that we can.

Mr President, Joe, it’s an honour to be here at the White House and thank you for your warm welcome.

Not for decades has the relationship between our two nations been so important.

The values we share – our belief in freedom, democracy, and the rule of law – have never changed.

They never will.

But what has changed, are the challenges we face.

And standing here together, as our predecessors have done for generations…

…I feel confident that through the strength of our relationship…

…we can shape the world once again in our pursuit of liberty, prosperity, and the possibilities of a new age.

That begins with our highest priority – national security.

Last time I was here in the US, we signed AUKUS – the most significant defence partnership in generations.

Because we recognise that the security of the Atlantic and Pacific regions are indivisible. And just a fortnight ago, in Hiroshima, President Biden and I stood with President Zelenskyy and our G7 allies in a powerful display of unity.

The UK is proud of our contribution – including providing tanks, long-range weapons, and training Ukrainian soldiers.

But let no one doubt: US leadership and resources are the decisive contribution allowing the forces of democracy and freedom to prevail.

As I said in Congress, and I say again now to President Biden – and to the American people – thank you.

And just as we collaborate to protect our national security – so we must increasingly do the same to protect our economic security, on which our prosperity depends.

Countries like China and Russia are willing to manipulate and exploit our openness…

…steal our intellectual property, use technology for authoritarian ends, or withdraw crucial resources, like energy.

They will not succeed.

Today we have agreed the Atlantic Declaration – a new economic partnership for a new age, of a kind that has never been agreed before.

Yes, a partnership that protects our citizens.

But more than that, …a test case for the kind of reimagined alliances President has spoken so eloquently about.

That means new investment.

This week alone, £14bn of new American investment has been committed into the UK, creating thousands of jobs.

It means stronger supply chains, with a new action plan on clean energy.

And it means reducing trade barriers in the technologies of the future.

With a new, secure UK-US Data Bridge – helping tens of thousands of small businesses.

An agreement to work towards mutual recognition of more professional qualifications in areas like engineering…

And we’re launching negotiations on a new Critical Minerals Agreement.

Once concluded, this will give UK companies stronger access to the US market.

And we’re building on our extraordinary, shared strengths in cutting edge future technologies…

…with joint research collaborations in areas like quantum, semiconductors, and AI.

And our job as leaders is to ensure that this technological revolution makes us more secure and not less.

Last week, the pioneers of Artificial Intelligence warned us about the scale of the challenge, as well as the opportunity.

The US and the UK are the world’s foremost democratic AI powers.

So today, President Biden and I have agreed to work together on AI safety, including multilaterally.

The UK looks forward to hosting the first global summit on AI safety, later this year.

So that we can seize the extraordinary possibilities of this new technological age – and do so, with confidence.

And we are well placed to do so.

I know some people have wondered what kind of partner Britain would be after we left the EU.

I’d say: judge us by our actions.

We’re as committed to our values as ever, as reliable an ally as ever, as attractive an investment destination as ever.

But we’re changing, too.

We’re strengthening our relationships not just with old friends like America and in Europe…

…but with new friends in the Indo-Pacific, too.

And we now have the freedom to regulate the new technologies that will shape our economic future – like AI – more quickly and flexibly.

That is the future we are creating in Britain – confident, proud, and free.
Let me close, with a personal reflection.

As Joe mentioned, he and I have seen quite a lot of each other in recent months. I gather our wives have even started to take spin classes together.

We were talking earlier about our hometowns.

Joe is very rightly proud of Scranton.

And I was telling him a bit about Southampton in England, where I’m from.

Not everyone knows this, but it was in a church in Southampton where…

…in the days before he set sail for these shores…

…that John Winthrop first spoke about his dream of building a city on a hill.

And that reminds us that the relationship between our two nations is unlike any other.

Our alliance is so strong because it is not abstract – it is rooted in our people.

And it’s never been about our history alone, but our ability to grasp the future.

We share the same beliefs, pursue the same purpose, and act according to the same ideals.

And that’s why today, as we meet the challenges of our time, we can depend upon each other with absolute conviction.

When the United States and the United Kingdom stand together, the world is a safer, better, and more prosperous place.

That’s why ours is the indispensable alliance.

Thank you.

June 14, 2023
James Cleverly – 2023 Speech at the OECD’s Ministerial Council Meeting in Paris

The speech made by James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary, in Paris on 7 June 2023.

Good morning Ministers, Ambassadors, Friends, Colleagues.

Welcome to today’s OECD Ministerial Council Meeting. Our theme “Securing a resilient future: shared values and global partnerships” is both timely and important.

I’m honoured to represent the UK as chair of this year’s meeting.

And we have put together an ambitious, forward-looking agenda that addresses our most serious and immediate concerns.

The global pandemic demonstrated the importance of resilient and diversified supply chains and trading systems. Climate change and the loss of biodiversity are serious problems for all of us.

Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine threatens to upend the international order and that is why it is so important that it must fail and that our friends in Ukraine must win.

I have just returned from Ukraine, from Kyiv, and I saw a country under arms, I saw a country defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity. But I also saw a country defending the principles that underpin peace, security and economic development in the post-war era. That is why our support to them must endure and that is why their success must be guaranteed.

The OECD is well positioned to promote unity between allies and to encourage a coherent response to the acute and long-term issues that we face.

Today’s Ministerial Council Meeting is special, is unique. We have opened our discussions to non-members and we’re honoured by the participation of a wider range of global voices. And our agenda addresses their shared concerns and priorities. And we will have better discussions as a result of their participation.

This year opens a new chapter in the OECD’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific. Underpinned by our new Strategic Framework, we all recognise the region’s importance for global growth, critical supply chains, digital transition and resilience, and, of course, climate action.

But we must not ignore the challenges that we face today.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is always at the forefront of our minds. And we must support Ukraine to win, and we must support its recovery efforts once it does. And we look forward to hosting the Ukraine Recovery Conference in London in a few weeks’ time.

This war continues to imperil the world’s economy by disrupting global supply chains and unleashing a wave of inflation driven by high fuel and food prices. And vulnerable countries now face severe risk of food insecurity and, in some instances, famine.

So we must work closely together to strengthen global economic resilience to current and future shocks. And the OECD has the right policy tools and the right analysis to support these efforts. And we’re promoting supply chain resilience, better international tax rules, climate action, and, of course, gender equality.

We should remember that free markets offer the best and quickest route to prosperity. And gender equality is best advanced through free markets. Free trade inevitably benefits service industries and small business. And not only are they the life blood of local communities as well as national economies, they also disproportionately employ women. And so, therefore, freer trade disproportionately benefits women and when women are empowered socially and economically, everybody wins.

And my colleague, Kemi Badenoch, the UK Business and Trade Secretary, will explore how smart trade and investment policies can deliver global economic resilience and stimulate growth.

We often say that a rising tide raises all boats. Probably more accurate to say that a rising tide can lift all boats, and we need to work together to ensure that it does.

Our world is changing rapidly. New technologies offer people across the globe new freedoms, greater access to knowledge, better opportunities economically.

Artificial Intelligence-enabled technologies diagnose disease; virtual learning helps students who would otherwise be excluded from education; improved access to renewable energy will power our clean energy transition.

But technology also has the potential to undermine our safety, undermine our security, and undermine our democratic values. So we must address the risks by working together to ensure technology is designed, developed and deployed, and governed ethically, safely and reliably, so that we can harness the advantages and mitigate the risks.

The OECD Global Forum on Technology, which the UK is proud to support alongside Spain and the United States of America, had its inaugural meeting yesterday, chaired by my good friend and colleague Chloe Smith. And the Forum will find opportunities and mitigate the challenges of immersive technologies, quantum and synthetic biology.

Innovation ushers our societies towards new frontiers. It unlocks previously inconceivable improvements.

It will be central to ensuring we can adapt to environmental change and cut greenhouse gas emissions.

And our discussions on Future Frontiers and Energy Futures will explore these issues in more depth, and I look forward to hearing the outcome of the panel chaired by my colleague Grant Shapps, Secretary of State for Energy and Net Zero.

The International Energy Agency and the OECD are highly regarded thought leaders in this field and that’s why it’s great to have Director-General Dr Fatih Birol and Secretary-General Mathias Cormann on the panel, alongside the Minister from Sweden.

All our fortunes depend on a stable and peaceful international order. By working together we give ourselves the best chance to create an environment where everybody can prosper.

The OECD is a cornerstone of the multilateral order. We are a community of like-minded members, committed to free markets, to democracy, to the rule of law, to free trade, to human rights, to sustainability, to gender equality, and, of course, to fairness. These are the values that have brought us together today.

So let this meeting renew our commitment to global partnerships, to extend the reach of the OECD, and, by doing so, to build a prosperous future trade for the whole world.

It is a genuine pleasure now to take the opportunity to invite the Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal to say a few words on behalf of Ukraine.

Thank you.

June 12, 2023
Anne-Marie Trevelyan – 2023 Speech at Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore

The speech made by Anne-Marie Trevelyan, the Minister of State at the Foreign Office, in Singapore on 3 June 2023.

Good afternoon, it is a pleasure to be here in Singapore, and to join such a distinguished panel.

I am glad to have the opportunity to set out the ways in which the UK is deepening our cooperation with you, our partners in the Indo-Pacific. This work is important to us all, not just because this global growth hub plays a huge role in our shared security, freedom, and prosperity. But because of its central importance in tackling some of the most pressing global challenges – from climate change to managing the transformational impact of cutting-edge technologies such as AI.

The UK’s commitment to the Indo Pacific is already bearing fruit across trade, defence, climate action and more. We are delighted to be an ASEAN Dialogue Partner and to be well on the way to joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

We hugely value and respect the central role that ASEAN plays in promoting co-operation and shaping the wider Indo-Pacific regional order. In particular, ASEAN’s Outlook on the Indo-Pacific provides a clear and welcome steer on how we can best work together, underpinned by shared priorities such as transparency, respect for sovereignty and international law.

As a Dialogue Partner, and a country committed to multilateralism, the UK places huge importance on listening to others’ views and ensuring that we shape our approach. We know that these genuine, trusted partnerships are the key to success.

If we look at some of the minilateralist relationships in the region, around climate action, we are excited to be working with Indonesia and Vietnam who are demonstrating great leadership in implementing new Just Energy Transition Partnerships with international support, driving a clean energy future for the region.

On maritime co-operation, an area of particular importance to us as a maritime trading nation, we are developing, with our Southeast Asian partners, an ambitious programme to build capacity and boost training on vital issues from protecting the marine environment to upholding maritime law.

We are also making a practical contribution to the region’s maritime security today. In 2021, two Offshore Patrol Vessels, HMS Tamar and HMS Spey, began their long-term deployment to the Indo-Pacific.

These crews of young Royal Navy sailors have been discovering anew the maritime complexity of the region and building strong new bonds of friendship. We will deploy a Littoral Response Group to the region next year to add further support and depth to the UK’s commitment. And – following HMS Queen Elizabeth, our 5th generation aircraft carrier and her strike group’s visits in 2021 – we will be sending another Carrier Strike Group to the Indo-Pacific in 2025.

Meanwhile, on Myanmar, the UK has focused on uniting the international community behind support for the ASEAN Five Point Consensus – including the landmark UN Security Council Resolution agreed last December. We are proud to be the penholder at the UN and will continue to bring all our efforts to support solutions.

The complex challenges facing the Indo-Pacific require a multi-faceted response.

The UK respects and supports ASEAN’s central role, both in enabling cooperation between its members, and in anchoring the wider regional security architecture. Within our ASEAN Plan of Action, which is now up and running, are a series of practical ASEAN-wide programmes. In addition, smaller groupings can also be effective in driving key issues more quickly. For the UK, what is important is that these initiatives are guided by a shared vision and shared respect for the principles of openness, good governance, respect for sovereignty and respect for international law.

Whether we are engaging with our partners collectively, bilaterally or as part of a smaller group driving action on urgent issues, the UK’s commitment to transparency with ASEAN partners remains unwavering.

Perhaps most clearly, if we look at AUKUS – through which we are supporting Australia in their defence and security responsibilities, bringing our decades of experience to heed, and accelerating collaboration on advanced military technologies with them and the US.

Is it geopolitically significant? Yes. Is it an alliance? No. Does it support security and stability in the Indo-Pacific – a goal to which ASEAN is also committed? Absolutely.

This is why I was so pleased to see Indonesian President Widodo’s comments that AUKUS and the Quad are partners not competitors to ASEAN; we wholeheartedly agree.

Looking to the future, the UK is committed to playing an even fuller and more active role in promoting and supporting a free and open Indo-Pacific, alongside other ASEAN Dialogue Partners.

This is why we have applied to join the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus and the ASEAN Regional Forum.

And we will continue to deepen our cooperation with ASEAN through our five-year plan of action which we launched last year, advancing our shared priorities on security, the economy and some of the biggest global challenges of our times. Together, we can continue to build a more stable, peaceful and prosperous future for all.

June 12, 2023
James Cleverly – 2023 Speech at the Gabriela Mistral Cultural Centre in Santiago, Chile

The speech made by James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary, in Santiago, Chile on 22 May 2023.

Thank you for hosting me.

It’s an honour to be here. Our setting has so much resonance for Chile’s recent political history. Constructed by volunteers during the Allende presidency. Requisitioned by the Ministry of Defence in the Pinochet era. Re-born as a Cultural Centre, it now bears the name of one of two Chilean Nobel prize winners, Gabriela Mistral.

Two hundred years ago, a fierce revolutionary struggle was raging on both sides of the Atlantic. A battle of ideas in which liberty, self-determination and representative government set themselves against absolutism and autocracy.

It reached its dramatic climax here. In Latin America. Under the inspirational leadership of figures like Simon Bolivar, Bernardo O’Higgins, José de San Martín or Miguel Hidalgo.

Latin America’s struggle for independence was surely one of the most uplifting episodes of the momentous revolutionary era that laid the foundations of the modern world. A tale of hardship, perseverance, exile and betrayal. Of stunning victories and extraordinary sacrifice. Of inspiration, leadership and unity.

From the very beginning, my great and gifted predecessor, George Canning, foresaw that Latin America would hold the balance of power in world politics.

And this is also the continent that gave birth to the extraordinary genre that is magical realism. And imagine if I were giving this speech in the magical realist tradition. I would tell you that George Canning appeared to me in my dreams, taking the form of a mighty, powerful jaguar, conveying a message for me to pass to you.

Although actually, that didn’t happen. But Canning’s wisdom about ‘the New World being called into existence to redress the balance of the Old’ rings as true today as when he said it in 1826.

The allure and romance of this continent drew many others, including thousands of battle-hardened veterans who volunteered in the British Legions. Men like James Rooke, after whom a battalion is named in the Colombian army. Or Admiral Thomas Cochrane, the man Napoleon dubbed ‘the Sea Wolf’. And who established both the first Chilean Naval Squadron and the forebear of today’s Brazilian Navy. Or Martin Guisse, who founded the Peruvian Navy. I am delighted that warships in Latin American navies bear their names to this day.

I am also proud of the role the United Kingdom played in supporting the struggle for Latin America’s independence, and in laying the foundations for your subsequent success. British engineers and British finance helped build the railways and the ports that connected Latin America to the markets across the world.

Two hundred years on from that revolutionary period, the tectonic plates of world politics are shifting once again. Today I want to talk about values, climate and the shared bonds between our peoples.

We are living through the beginning of a new era of geopolitical competition. Alongside these trends, a battle of ideas is taking place once again. This time, its focus is on the nature and the future of the international order.

Our position is clear. Respect for sovereignty, respect for territorial integrity, respect for self-determination and human rights must prevail. Alongside democracy, the rule of law, liberty and freedom. Free and fair elections are the foundation of any stable, healthy democracy.

I know these values are shared across Latin America, although not yet enjoyed by all. Your support in the UN for Ukraine’s right to defend itself against Russian aggression has made that crystal clear.

Talking of self-determination and democracy, it would be remiss of me not to talk about the Falklands.

The Falkland Islanders, like everybody else, deserve the freedom to decide their own future, in political, cultural, economic and development terms. Their 2013 referendum made clear that they wish to maintain their current relationship with the UK, as is their absolute right. And the UK will continue to support them.

But protecting self-determination and democracy is not the sole challenge.

We live in a world of rapidly increasing transnational threats. Climate change is the most urgent and obvious example. We need strong multilateral institutions, representing the world as it is today, economically, politically and demographically.

This is not currently the case. The UK recognises that. And we want to work with you to change it.

Countries across Latin America have a decisive role to play in reshaping the international order and the multilateral system to fit the world of the 21st century. Just as Canning foresaw.

The population of this corner of our planet and its economy have grown rapidly in recent decades. In the year of my birth, 1969, Latin America was home to 279 million people. Today that figure is more than 664 million people.

Your demographic and economic weight gives you a pivotal role in determining whether the international order will endure.

As I said last December, the shift in world power has been evident for some time. And it is my goal as the UK Foreign Secretary to ensure that our strategic thinking reflects this simple fact. That’s why I’ve come to Latin America this week.

I want to take forward the agenda set out in 2010 by my predecessor William Hague at Canning House in London.

Since then, we’ve opened or reopened embassies and high commissions across the region. The UK has dozens of honorary consuls from Tijuana on the Mexico-US border to Punta Arenas on the southern tip of Chile.

The UK has welcomed thousands more Chevening scholars to our universities. And the number of Latin Americans visiting the UK has nearly doubled. The British Council has extended its reach 5-fold since 2010, reaching more than 100 million people across the Americas last year.

UK trade and investment with Latin America recovered strongly last year from their post-pandemic low. The total value of imports and exports rose by a massive 45% last year to more than £40 billion.

But with Latin America representing only 2% of UK imports and only 2.5% of UK exports worldwide, I recognise that there is much more to do on trade and investment. Our shared strategic focus on critical minerals, green hydrogen and sustainable infrastructure is encouraging.

The UK’s imminent accession to the Trans Pacific Partnership, joining Mexico, Peru and Chile, is a positive step forward. And hopefully soon joined by Costa Rica, Ecuador and Uruguay.

Last week, the UK completed the third round of talks on a UK-Mexico Free Trade Agreement.

Together we have a strong democratic voice in favour of the rules-based international system. Together we must speak out against the systemic threats to these values arising from multiple parts of the globe. And together we must work together on climate, the rights of women and girls, green energy, cyber security, science and technology.

At COP26 in Glasgow, my country pledged £300 million to protect the Amazon. As a result of our Partnerships for Forests programme, which I saw just days ago in Colombia, more than 62,000 hectares of land are now being managed sustainably across Colombia and Peru.

Another joint focus is the globally strategic lithium triangle that lies between Argentina, Bolivia and Chile. Rio Tinto’s billion-dollar investment is forecast to yield 100,000 tonnes of lithium by 2027. This will fuel the green battery revolution.

We’ve supported Chile to sell bonds worth more than £21 billion on London’s Sustainable Bond Market. We’ve leveraged $464 million of green finance for Mexico.

Our green hydrogen technology offers Latin American farmers a cheaper and cleaner alternative to petroleum-based fertilisers, boosting food security everywhere.

As part of our International Women and Girls Strategy, the UK has helped Chevening Alumni establish a gender-focused NGO called Hace la Fuerza.

Bringing together women from Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay, we have built a community of future Latin American leaders. Because when women’s rights are advanced, everyone gains.

These examples – and others like them – show how partnership between the UK and the countries of Latin America can make a real difference. Not just to our security and prosperity, but to that of the whole world.

There is so much more that I would like us to do together.

Our bilateral joint roadmaps will set direction in Brazil, Colombia, Peru and elsewhere.

The universal values on which the international order stands are timeless. But our world’s multilateral institutions do need reform, in particular to give more voice and more influence to Latin America. The UK wants Brazil to sit as a permanent member of the UN Security Council.

And we must work towards broader reform, in partnership with others. The call for systemic reform of our international financial institutions must be strengthened.

Together we can unlock the critical green investments that this region needs from the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank.

The UK government supports the momentum behind Prime Minister Mottley’s Bridgetown Initiative. The poorest and most vulnerable must benefit from overdue reform of international financial institutions.

International tax reform, coupled with a crackdown on money laundering and illicit finance will stop the leakage of much-needed funding from national treasuries. Which is why the UK is providing £20 million for rule of law and anti-corruption reforms in Panama, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. And £2.2 million for tax reform in Brazil.

But we should not neglect people-to-people ties.

The UK is home to more than a quarter of a million Latin Americans – amongst them are 71 players in the English Premier League, including 6 players from Argentina’s World Cup winning squad. My team Arsenal, even with 3 fantastic Brazilian players, all called Gabriel, still couldn’t win the league.

Hundreds of thousands of Britons visit this outstandingly beautiful region every year.

Spanish is already the second most popular foreign language in British schools – and is forecast to take the top slot in the coming years.

I want your best and brightest researchers and students to come to the UK’s world-leading universities. And I want more British students to come to Latin America to study as well.

We should be ambitious for our future relationship. Not just because of the historical bonds of friendship that have united us for more than 200 years, but because we all treasure the same fundamental values that inspired the creation of the international order. It will only evolve, survive and ultimately prosper with the support and whole-hearted engagement of this great region.

Two hundred years ago, Simon Bolivar said that “the freedom of the New World is the hope of the universe”. Your love of freedom continues to inspire the world today.

It’s why I’ve come here from London to revive old friendships and build new ones. And to pledge our long-term commitment.

I’m offering the UK’s support on the issues that we together most care about. And I ask for yours in exchange, as a partner. But, even more importantly, as the representative of this continent’s oldest friend.

Thank you.

June 2, 2023