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Below is a press release issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 05/11/2019.

Statement on Israel’s plans to advance over 2,300 housing units in West Bank settlements.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said:

“The UK condemns the Israeli authorities’ recent advancement of plans for over 2,300 housing units across the West Bank.

Settlements are illegal under international law and undermine the physical viability of the two-state solution. The UK calls on Israel to halt such counterproductive action.”

Below is a press release issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 05/11/2019.

The Government of Yemen and the Southern Transitional Council have signed an agreement in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

An FCO spokesperson said:

“The UK welcomes the signing of the Riyadh Agreement between the Government of Yemen and the Southern Transitional Council.

Recognising the difficult political, humanitarian and security situation in the South of Yemen, we applaud the efforts of Saudi Arabia in seeking to re-establish security and stability in the region.

We fully support the Saudi-mediated Riyadh Agreement as a positive and important step towards a comprehensive political solution for Yemen.”

Below is a press release issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 05/11/2019.

The Minister for the Middle East Dr Andrew Murrison met the Chairman of the White Helmets today to discuss the situation in Idlib, Syria.

Dr Murrison said:

“I had a valuable meeting with Chairman of the White Helmets, Mr al-Saleh today to discuss the situation on the ground in Idlib.

White Helmet volunteers continue to be subjected to a massive disinformation campaign by the Syrian regime and the Russian government. These deceitful tactics are a brazen attempt to divert attention from the barrage of appalling attacks against the Syrian people, which has included the use of chemical weapons.

I thanked Mr al-Saleh for the lifesaving service that the White Helmets provide to thousands of ordinary Syrians and reiterated the UK’s unwavering support.”

Below is a press release issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 05/11/2019.

Statement by Ambassador Karen Pierce, UK Permanent Representative to the UN, at the Security Council briefing on Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Thank you, High Representative. Thank you to Ms Korjenic for your briefings.

I think we take a different view on the importance of the office of the High Representative than the Russian representative has just set out. We believe that the Office of the High Representative continues to play an essential role in Bosnia and Herzegovina and has the United Kingdom’s full support, including, as other countries have mentioned round the table, for the use of the Bonn powers if and when the situation requires. And the reason for that, I think, is obvious. There are some people, including some leaders in Bosnia and Herzegovina, who want to do all they can to stop Bosnia and Herzegovina being a flourishing, normal state. Dayton requires Bosnia to be an independent state with two entities, the Federation and Republika Srpska. But it does not place the entities above the state and therefore, as long as there are leaders in Bosnia who refuse to acknowledge or who work against that very important statehood aspect of Bosnia and Herzegovina enshrined in Dayton, codified by this Council and implemented for very many years through the Peace Implementation Council and the steering board, as long as that antagonistic approach to Bosnia as a state continues, the Office of the High Representative will continue to be necessary and the Bonn powers will continue to be necessary. So I just want to put on record the United Kingdom’s very firm support for you, High Representative, and your team.

I also want to thank Ms Korjenic from Trial International. We in the UK support Trial’s work to secure justice for survivors of conflict-related sexual violence and we pay tribute to all the work you do – and I’ll come back to that in a minute, if I may. And we join other colleagues in welcoming the unanimous adoption of the resolution for a further 12 months, authorising the European Union to continue Operation Althea. This demonstrates the continued commitment of the international community to Bosnia’s security and stability, but as the French representative said, it also underscores Bosnia’s European and Euro-Atlantic direction and trajectory.

And I just want to say on that that it is my understanding that there are certain laws in Bosnia and Herzegovina that codify this Euro-Atlantic integration, both in respect of the European Union and in respect of NATO, and there are certainly resolutions of this council that codify the Euro-Atlantic integration and there are numerous decisions by the Peace Implementation Council and by the steering board, which codify that Euro-Atlantic integration. And that desire of the Bosnian people has never been overturned in law. So while leaders may argue against that because they’ve changed their mind or it doesn’t suit their political rhetoric, the law of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the corpus of decisions supported and passed by the international community is in favour of supporting Bosnia for as long as she wants to go down that road of Euro-Atlantic integration. And these are battles that need to be fought democratically, not undemocratically through polemic and demagoguery.

I want to just recall that nearly 30 years ago, Bosnia and Herzegovina was the big issue for this council, where our predecessors passed many resolutions day after day to try and stop the fighting and restore stability and peace to the country. The war lasted for four dreadful years and it changed forever the way the UN does peacekeeping. In 1995, as we’ve heard today, the massacre in Srebrenica claimed nine thousand lives of Muslim men and boys – the worst massacre in Europe since 1945. These are not insignificant events for Europe or for Bosnia or for the Balkans. And the reason the International Criminal Tribunal was set up was indeed to try people for these crimes. So we very much agree with Ms Korjenic that people should not be trying to undermine what the ICTY discovered. The ICTY was a legitimate tribunal. It was established by this Council and its judgments still stand.

I’m running out of time so I will simply say that on reconciliation, I endorse what the German and Indonesian representatives said. That’s a very important part of what is happening. And I also want to stress the vital importance of the rule of law for all Bosnia and Herzegovina citizens. Ms Korjenic exhorted us not to despair. I don’t give up on Bosnia. I’ve worked on the issue of the Balkans since 1991. We’re not going to despair because if we despair of Bosnia, it fundamentally means the bad guys have won. And that’s not what we’re going to let happen. So you can rely on the United Kingdom and your Atlantic institutions to remain helping Bosnia as long as all of Bosnia’s citizens want it.

Thank you very much.

Below is a press release issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 02/01/2020.

Following the storming of the US Embassy in Baghdad in December 2019, the UK has called for diplomatic missions to be protected.

An FCO spokesperson said:

“The UK unequivocally condemns the attack on the US Embassy in Baghdad. It is wholly unacceptable to target diplomatic premises. The Government of Iraq should ensure that diplomatic premises are protected, and those responsible for violence are held to account.”

Below is a press release issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 02/01/2020.

Troika statement reviewing progress towards the formation of South Sudan’s revitalised Transitional Government of National Unity.

The UK, US and Norway have issued a Troika statement:

“The Troika remains committed to the people of South Sudan, and at this important point, we call upon all parties to meet their commitments to deliver lasting peace. With less than six weeks remaining to meet the extended deadline to form a Transitional Government of National Unity, South Sudan’s leaders have a clear duty to their citizens to deliver. We commend the leadership of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development in its continued efforts to mediate among the parties, and we commit to work with the region to ensure that the parties deliver progress.

We welcome the recent meetings between leaders of key parties and their public commitment to form a government of national unity by the February deadline. We urge all sides to build on this, to continue dialogue, and to ensure meaningful progress. We call on all sides to further demonstrate that they possess the political will to deliver peace. We also remind all parties to uphold, and affirm publicly, their commitment to the permanent ceasefire, and to instruct their forces to exercise restraint. Each delay in implementation worsens the urgent humanitarian crisis and shakes the people’s confidence in their leaders.

Ending reliance on military force and creating political space for a diverse range of voices from all political parties, civil society, and the media is essential to creating a durable peace and an inclusive government that represents the interests of all parties to the agreement.

We echo the voices of South Sudan’s civil society leaders, who have called on the government to fund the peace process transparently, and we encourage all signatories to demonstrate measurable progress on the issues of states and boundaries and on the implementation of pre-transitional security arrangements. We encourage South Sudan’s recommitment to the inclusion of at least 35 percent of women in every level of government as decided by all the parties.

The people of South Sudan deserve a government that respects human rights and leaders who make necessary compromises for the greater good of the country. We urge the signatories to the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) to fulfill their obligations to represent the interests of all South Sudanese, do all that is required to form an inclusive national unity government, and lay the foundations for the next steps of South Sudan’s peace process and political transition.”

Below is a press release issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 06/11/2019.

Statement by Ambassador Karen Pierce, UK Permanent Representative to the UN, at the Security Council briefing on the ICC – Libya.

I, too, would like to thank the prosecutor for briefing the Council in her 18th report on the situation in Libya.

The United Kingdom strongly supports the work of the International Criminal Court. Its role in holding accountable those responsible for the most serious crimes in Libya is of paramount importance. And this is especially so given recent flagrant breaches of international humanitarian law and human rights violations and abuses, including the targeting of civilian infrastructure, such as the Tajura Detention Center in July, as she set out. The conflict is having an unacceptable impact on civilians, including migrants and refugees. And the United Kingdom is clear that civilians should be protected and that those responsible for violations should be held accountable. The ICC is crucial to this.

International criminal justice is a collective effort. States should ensure cooperation and fulfill their obligations. We support the prosecutor’s call for all relevant states, including state parties and non-state parties, to cooperate with the ICC in the arrest and surrender of warranted individuals. And we share concerns reports of Mr Al-Werfalli’s promotion within the Libyan National Army and the ICC’s call on General Haftar to facilitate his immediate surrender.

It’s clear that the ongoing conflict is having an unacceptable impact on the humanitarian and human rights situation in Libya. We call on all member states to continue to engage with UN-led efforts to secure greater security and stability. We all know that there is no military solution to Libya’s problems. All parties to the conflict should commit to an immediate ceasefire and respect their obligations under international humanitarian law.

The indiscriminate shelling of civilian infrastructure, such as Matenga Airport, threatens Libyan lives and livelihoods and is unacceptable. The United Kingdom remains particularly concerned over the disappearance of MP Siham Sergewa in July 2019. And we reiterate our condolences following the car bomb attack in Benghazi, which killed five people, including three UN staff members.

Support for international criminal justice is a fundamental part of our foreign policy and the British government strongly supports the ICC’s role in pursuing accountability in Libya. The United Kingdom has always been and remains a strong supporter of the mission of the ICC to hold accountable those accused of the most serious crimes, to uphold the rule of law and to achieve justice for victims. We will continue to support the prosecutor and your team, Madam Prosecutor, as you pursue your investigations.