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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-01-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to participants in the Syrian peace process to encourage them to consider a statement urging an end to the use of long-term siege of civilian populations in Madaya and other such settlements.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

The UK has consistently condemned any illegal use of siege tactics and called on all parties to the conflict in Syria to allow the safe, unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid and to respect all relevant provisions of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), as set out in numerous UN Security Council Resolutions.

The UK played a key role in the passage of UNSCR 2254 of 18 December 2015, which specifically calls on the parties to allow rapid, safe and unhindered access for humanitarian aid to besieged and hard to reach places.

It is deplorable that the regime, which is responsible for most of the sieges, has only approved 10% of UN requests over the past year to deliver aid to besieged and hard to reach areas. The regime’s allies, including Russia, must do much more to ensure the regime complies with its obligations. We continue to make this clear in our diplomatic engagements on Syria.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-01-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will take steps to secure the agreement of all parties to permit access for food and other vital supplies to the residents of Madaya and other settlements in Syria in which a civilian population is being besieged by combatant forces.

Mr Desmond Swayne

The UK condemns the use of siege tactics against civilian populations, and continues to call upon all sides to the conflict to respect International Law and ensure free, unimpeded access for humanitarian agencies.

In the past year, only 10% of all requests submitted by the UN to the regime to access besieged and hard-to-reach areas have been approved and delivered. That is why the UK played a critical role in co-sponsoring and lobbying for UN Security Council Resolutions 2165, 2191 and 2258 which enable the UN to deliver aid into Syria without the consent of the regime.

The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the Syria crisis. We have pledged over £1.1 billion, making us the second largest bilateral donor after the US. Of this total, we have allocated £561 million to support vulnerable people inside Syria.

The desperate situation in besieged and hard to reach areas shows why we need the international community to come together at the London Conference for Syria and the region on 4 February to support immediate needs and identify longer-term solutions to address the needs of those affected by the crisis, especially regarding jobs and education. We also hope the Conference will put pressure on the parties to the conflict by shining a spotlight on violations of International Law and impediments to humanitarian access in Syria.