Category: Press Releases

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 21 December 2022.

Thank you, President. I would like to thank Council Members for their constructive engagement on this text and for their support today.

As Somalia steps-up the fight against Al-Shabaab, ATMIS’s support remains vital. Yet, at the same time, the successful transition of responsibility from ATMIS to Somalia is an essential component of achieving long-term peace and security across Somalia.

The UK is proud to continue to provide financial support to the African Union and Somalia in this endeavour. In 2022, the UK will have provided over $55m for ATMIS and over $8m to the Somalia Trust Fund.

The extension to ATMIS Phase 1, authorised in this resolution, gives more time for the African Union and Somalia to work together and advance the strategic, gradual and sector-by-sector transition of security responsibility from ATMIS to Somali security and police forces.

The UK encourages the African Union and Somalia to seize this opportunity and we look forward to hearing about the progress made in March next year.

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 21 December 2022.

Explanation of vote by Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the Security Council meeting on the Situation in Myanmar.

Thank you, President.

Today we have adopted the first Security Council resolution on the situation in Myanmar. It is the result of many weeks of careful consultation with Council Members, with ASEAN members, and with other key regional partners.

In February 2021, the military overturned the results of a democratic election, seized power and plunged Myanmar and its 55 million people into a series of cascading crises – humanitarian, economic and political. The coup has had negative consequences for the region and its stability, including by exacerbating existing challenges facing the Rohingya.

With this adoption, the Council has responded to the calls of ASEAN Leaders for UN support for their efforts. The resolution calls for the cessation of violence; immediate and concrete implementation of ASEAN’s Five Point Consensus; respect for the democratic will of the people of Myanmar; respect for human rights, and accountability for those who violate them; full and unhindered humanitarian access to those in need; and the immediate release of all those arbitrarily detained, including Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint.

The briefing of the Secretary-General in March, mandated under this resolution, will be an important opportunity to assess developments on the ground. And we stand ready to take further action as necessary.

Madam President, today we have sent a firm message to the military, that they should be in no doubt: we expect this resolution to be implemented, in full. We have also sent a clear message to the people of Myanmar, that we seek progress in line with their rights, their wishes and their interests.

I thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 21 December 2022.

A joint statement from Foreign Ministers condemning the Taliban’s recent decision to ban women from universities in Afghanistan.

The Foreign Ministers of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States and the High Representative of the European Union strongly condemn the Taliban’s recent decisions to ban women from universities, to continue to bar girls from secondary schools, and to impose other harsh restrictions on the ability of women and girls in Afghanistan to exercise their human rights and fundamental freedoms.

The Taliban’s oppressive measures against Afghan girls and women have been relentless and systemic. Over the last 16 months, the Taliban have issued no fewer than 16 decrees and edicts that, among other things, constrain women’s mobility, remove women from places of work, require head-to-toe coverings for women, ban women from using public spaces such as parks and gyms and leave widows and women-headed households in dire circumstances by the requirement of male guardianship. These policies make clear the Taliban’s disregard for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of Afghanistan.

Afghan women’s ingenuity and dynamism are needed urgently to help relieve profound and staggering economic and humanitarian needs. A stable, economically viable, and peaceful Afghanistan is only attainable and sustainable if all Afghans, including women and girls, can fully, equally, and meaningfully participate in and contribute to the country’s future and development.

We stand with all Afghans in their demand to exercise their human rights consistent with Afghanistan’s obligations under international law. With these moves, the Taliban are further isolating themselves from the Afghan population and the international community. We urge the Taliban to immediately abandon the new oppressive measures with respect to university education for women and girls and to, without delay, reverse the existing decision to prohibit girls’ access to secondary school.

Taliban policies designed to erase women from public life will have consequences for how our countries engage with the Taliban. Our foremost concern will continue to be the welfare, rights, and freedoms of the people of Afghanistan.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 21 December 2022.

Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the UN Security Council meeting on Syria.

Thank you, President. I want to start by thanking our briefers Special Envoy Geir Pedersen and USG Martin Griffiths for their comprehensive and sobering briefings today.

First, on the humanitarian situation. The facts on the ground are clear, as Special Envoy Pederson said, we have an ever-deepening humanitarian crisis. An estimated 15.3 million Syrians will be in dire need of humanitarian assistance by early 2023, with approximately 12 million facing acute food insecurity.

The Secretary General’s special report, published this month, sets out the criticality of food, shelter, and medical assistance — in particular, the response to cholera and immunisation services.

The UN has also clearly explained that cross-line operations compliment, but cannot replace or compensate for, the cross-border mechanism.

So my first point is that, with millions of Syrians facing another harsh winter, the moral and humanitarian imperatives are clear: renewing the cross-border mandate in January and continuing cross-border assistance is essential to the UN’s humanitarian operation, and provides a lifeline to those people in desperate need.

Madam President, my second point is that a political solution, as others have said, is the only way to bring an end to the humanitarian crisis. This means implementing Resolution 2254. That is to say: a nationwide ceasefire; safe, voluntary and dignified return of refugees; free and fair elections in line with a new constitution and release of those arbitrarily detained.

We know that thousands of Syrians are arbitrarily detained in regime detention centres and information on their whereabouts is withheld from their families. Worse, the Syrian Network for Human Rights reported yesterday that hundreds of detainee deaths, including many children, were never reported to the families.

I want to thank, too, USG Griffiths for his work to address gender-based violence. Colleagues will recall that three weeks ago the UK hosted a preventing sexual violence in conflict conference to strengthen global response to this problem.

We call for the immediate reconvening of the Constitutional Committee in Geneva to focus on the substance of political transition. The Syrian opposition remains ready to engage in good faith. We urge Russia and the regime to do the same.

My third point, Madam President, is that as we have heard, continuing the status quo is not an option. Syria needs the Security Council to unite and to support renewal of cross-border aid within a humanitarian framework, and implementation of Security Council resolution 2254 – leading to a political solution.

Thank you.