Tag: Foreign Office

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 8 March 2024.

The UK, European Commission, Cyprus, United Arab Emirates and United States gave a joint statement on activating a maritime corridor to deliver aid to Gaza.

Joint statement from the European Commission, the Republic of Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States endorsing the activation of a maritime corridor to deliver humanitarian assistance to Gaza:

The humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire, with innocent Palestinian families and children desperate for basic necessities. That is why today, the European Commission, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, the Republic of Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States announce our intent to open a maritime corridor to deliver much-needed additional amounts of humanitarian assistance by sea.

Cyprus’ leadership in establishing the Amalthea Initiative – which outlines a mechanism for securely shipping aid from Cyprus to Gaza via sea – was integral to enabling this joint effort to launch a maritime corridor.  Together, our nations intend to build on this model to deliver significant additional aid by sea, working in coordination with UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag – who is charged with facilitating, coordinating, monitoring, and verifying the flow of aid into Gaza under UN Security Council Resolution 2720. The dedicated efforts of the UAE to mobilize support for the Initiative will result in the initial shipment of food by sea to the people of Gaza.

Cyprus will soon convene senior officials to discuss how we can accelerate this maritime channel supporting those in need, supplementing land and air routes, including from Egypt and Jordan. The United States announced an emergency mission led by the US military to establish a temporary pier in Gaza, in coordination with humanitarian partners and other countries, to enable the delivery of significant quantities of assistance by sea. These efforts will be closely coordinated with the Government of Israel.

The delivery of humanitarian assistance directly to Gaza by sea will be complex, and our nations will continue to assess and adjust our efforts to ensure we deliver aid as effectively as possible. This maritime corridor can – and must – be part of a sustained effort to increase the flow of humanitarian aid and commercial commodities into Gaza through all possible routes. We will continue to work with Israel to expand deliveries by land, insisting that it facilitate more routes and open additional crossings to get more aid to more people. We affirm that protecting civilian lives is a key element of international humanitarian law that must be respected. And together, we must all do more to ensure aid gets to people who desperately need it.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 March 2024.

In response to the address by the Special Representative of the OSCE Chair-in-Office on Gender, Ambassador Holland outlines the UK’s commitment to improving the outlook for women and girls globally.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I would like to welcome Special Representative Palihovici back to the Permanent Council, and to thank you for your insightful opening remarks.

Madam Chair, as we approach International Women’s Day in 2024, global progress towards gender equality remains contested. Over 800 women or girls die every day due to pregnancy or childbirth complications. One in three women will suffer physical or sexual violence in their lifetimes. Violence against women continues to grow online. And in the OSCE region today, horrific evidence continues to emerge of conflict-related sexual violence perpetrated through Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.

The theme of International Women’s Day in 2024 is “Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress”. This focuses on the challenges caused by the alarming lack of global financing for gender equality measures. The COVID pandemic, conflicts, climate disasters and economic turmoil have pushed an extra 75 million people into severe poverty since 2020, with a disproportionate impact on women and girls. If current trends continue, more than 342 million women and girls could be living in extreme poverty by 2030.

These challenges can only be addressed through solutions that empower women. Ensuring women’s and girls’ rights across all aspects of life is the only way to secure prosperous and just economies, and a healthy planet for future generations.

The UK is committed to improving the outlook for women and girls globally. Exactly one year ago our (then-) Foreign Secretary launched the UK’s International Women and Girls Strategy, which sets out how the UK is putting women and girls at the heart of everything we do – domestically and internationally.

Since 2015 the UK has supported the education of over 10 million of the world’s most vulnerable girls. We have helped over 25 million women worldwide to access family planning advice. Through our flagship £38 million global programme, we have supported the work of over 600 women’s rights organisations. We are also helping to drive the global conversation, for example, through a series of Wilton Park conferences which place women’s rights organisations at the centre of the debate.

We know that urgent action is needed to accelerate progress to end gender-based violence. In November of last year, we announced a new package of support for women’s rights organisations to drive forward locally-led and survivor-centred approaches to tackling violence against women and girls, including in conflict and crisis settings. Since the launch of the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative in 2012, we have committed over £60 million to tackling conflict-related sexual violence globally.

Empowering women and girls, and preventing violence against them, will remain a UK priority. We are committed to ensuring every girl receives at least 12 years of quality education, and to ending the preventable deaths of mothers, new-born babies and children by 2030.

Madam Chair, we can only build a fairer, freer, safer, wealthier and greener world if we put women and girls at the heart of the OSCE’s work. Women’s inclusion in leadership and meaningful decision making is essential for local, national and regional progress.

It is vital that we, as OSCE participating States, fulfil our commitments to gender equality – as set out in the 1999 Charter for European Security, and related decisions – and ensure adequate funding for OSCE executive structures working to implement the organisation’s gender equality commitments.

As the UK has stated previously, the principles we mark on International Women’s Day are not just for a day. Advancing gender equality is a policy from which everyone benefits, bringing freedom and peace, boosting prosperity and trade, building resilience and strengthening global and regional security. It is vital that we follow through on our commitments to ensure the equal rights of all women and girls.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 March 2024.

In the lead up to International Women’s Day, Ambassador Holland notes the bravery of Ukrainian women and girls as Russia’s senseless war has devastating impacts on them.

Thank you, Madam Chair. This week in the lead up to International Women’s Day, we have been celebrating the accomplishments of women across the world. With that in mind, today I wish to highlight the courage and resilience of Ukrainian women, as they continue to stand up against Russian aggression and speak up for justice and peace.

Over the past two years, Russia’s senseless war has had a devastating impact on the lives of Ukrainian women and girls. Families have been torn apart, with many women suddenly becoming sole caregivers and providers. Mothers have faced the difficult decision to send their children to safety, while they remain in a warzone. Others have had their children forcibly taken from them. Many women and girls that remain in Ukraine have faced further trauma, with Russian forces committing terrible atrocities against them. And others have had their lives tragically cut short.

The wide-spread impact of Russia’s war on Ukrainian women cannot be ignored. And yet despite this, we continue to hear stories of women who symbolise hope and resilience. Such as, Vera Lytochenko, a violinist who decided to stay in Ukraine and play music for people hiding in bomb shelters to lift their spirits and soothe the frightened children. Or Iryna Yurchenko, a train conductor, who since the start of Russia’s war has helped evacuate people to safety with great bravery.

Ukrainian women have played a crucial role in defending their homeland with thousands of women serving in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, others have been instrumental to humanitarian, political, and security efforts. And Ukrainian women have refused to be silenced, coming forward with courage to document the horrific atrocities Russian Forces have committed against them, including sexual violence and torture.

To ensure justice is delivered, the UK has provided over £6 million to support projects aimed at building the domestic capacity of war crimes investigations. This has helped to embed international guidelines and best practice, including on survivor-centred approaches, through projects under the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group and work by the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative Team of Experts.

The UK has also been working closely with Ukrainian actors involved in tackling conflict related sexual violence, including First Lady Zelenska who we were pleased to welcome to the UK last week. The First Lady’s visit provided an opportunity to reflect and discuss collaboration with her Foundation on mental health and psychosocial support.

The UK is proud to be a leading donor in supporting Ukrainian women, girls, and the most excluded groups. In recognition of their vital contributions on the frontline and in their communities, the UK set up new funding last year to provide critical support. This included helping the Ukrainian Women’s Fund and local women-led organisations deliver live-saving services. Our support has also addressed the needs and priorities of the most marginalised, including internally displaced persons, Roma, and older persons.

Madam Chair, the UK will continue to support the women of Ukraine as they work to rebuild their homeland from the damage and devastation of Russia’s war. We remain deeply humbled by their remarkable bravery and we stand united with them. Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 March 2024.

UK statement for the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association.

Thank you, Mr President,

The UK welcomes the Special Rapporteur’s report, and we thank him for his dedication to the mandate during his tenure, including his numerous country visits and important thematic reports. We welcome the recommendations to engage with civil society, and we hope the standard he has set on what it is a priority issue for the UK will endure.

Mr President,

The right to peaceful protest is part of democratic society. In the UK, it is a long-standing tradition for people to gather and demonstrate their point of view, provided they do so within the confines of the law. We agree that both the government and law enforcement have a duty to uphold the human rights of all individuals, including when facilitating assemblies.

We also agree that the policing of protests must be proportionate, protecting the right to protest whilst also having a duty to maintain public safety and peace.

Special Rapporteur,

What steps do you feel governments can take to best support law enforcement practices around the world in balancing the rights of protestors with the rights of others to go about their daily lives without serious disruption?

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 March 2024.

UK military advisor, Nicholas Aucott, says Ukraine is inflicting significant losses on Russia’s airforce, with Ukraine destroying Russian jets 20 times faster than Russia can replace them.

Thank you, Mr Chair. This morning’s Security Dialogue was an excellent and informative session to hear expert opinion about the Women, Peace and Security agenda. The impact of Putin’s illegal war of aggression against its sovereign neighbour, Ukraine, has brought untold misery to hundreds of thousands of women and children. Women and children have been killed, their homes have been destroyed, they have been forced to leave their country and they have lost loved ones on the front line.

This war has been an awful tragedy for the people of Ukraine, but they continue to inspire and remind all of us here in this Forum of their resilience and bravery as they fight to defend their country and the values of democracy and freedom. Whilst the ground situation remains broadly static, Ukraine has continued to inflict significant losses on Russia’s invasion force, shooting down another three Sukhoi Su-34 fighter bombers in regions near Avdiivka and Mariupol, in the latest blow to Russia’s airforce.

This brings the total to 12 Sukhoi planes brought down in a 13-day period and 13 Russian planes overall, including the loss of the A-50U radar aircraft I spoke of last week. The repeated destruction of warplanes is a significant setback for Russia’s war effort, given that Russia is struggling to produce more than a few dozen each year due to sanctions, with reports suggesting that Russia is losing jets 20 times faster than they can replace them.

Mr Chair, Ukraine has stood up to Putin’s imperialistic ambitions. Now in the third year of war, Russia’s plan to surround Kyiv within three days, bring down the government, and subjugate most of the country in less than a month has spectacularly failed in its objectives. Instead, Russia’s illegal actions have strengthened the NATO alliance, weakened Russia’s own security partnerships and diminished Russia’s international standing.

Russia has been clear about its aims. No one in this Forum should be in any doubt. The Deputy Chair of Russia’s Security Council, Medvedev called Ukraine a “cancerous growth”, denying its right to exist; and we have seen in Bucha what Russia does in the territories it controls.

The United Kingdom will stand firm behind Ukraine to ensure that Russia’s unchecked aggression will not prevail. In support of this, the United Kingdom will co-lead a major drone capability coalition with Latvia. We have introduced the largest and most severe package of sanctions ever imposed on Russia or indeed any major economy. And we have now sanctioned over 1700 individuals and entities since Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The United Kingdom recognises that now is the time to double down on our support so Ukraine not only wins the war, but emerges from it stronger, with its sovereignty and freedom fully restored. By doing so, we make sure that Russia pays the price and its efforts to undermine global stability are stopped in their tracks. If we allow Russia to lay waste to this stability, the risks to the world order and to us all are grave. Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 March 2024.

Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on human rights and the environment. UK Statement at the 55th Human Rights Council.

Thank you, Mr President.

The United Kingdom welcomes today’s dialogue with the Special Rapporteur and notes with appreciation his latest report, including the extensive recommendations for States to consider supporting businesses to better protect our planet.

The UK government is clear that it expects all UK businesses to respect human rights throughout their operations, in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The UNGPs clearly set out the duties of States (in which business enterprises are domiciled or operating) and responsibilities of business enterprises to prevent, address, and remedy human rights abuses in business operations and global supply chains.

The UK welcomes the report’s attention to the importance of transparency and disclosure. Coordination in sustainability disclosures and reporting requirements encourages sectors to demonstrate socially responsible and environmentally sustainable practices. The UK is introducing due diligence legislation through the Environment Act to help tackle illegal deforestation in our supply chains. This is part of a wider package of measures to increase our sustainability practices and contribute to global efforts to protect forests and other ecosystems.

Special Rapporteur,

How can we encourage an appropriate balance of legal and voluntary measures for positive business impact on human rights and the environment?

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 March 2024.

Statement by Ambassador James Kariuki at the UN Security Council meeting on Sudan.

Thank you President and thank you, Secretary-General, for your sobering update.

Colleagues, the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces bear responsibility for the horrendous situation in Sudan.

Shelling and attacks from both sides in heavily populated, urban areas and across the entire western region of Sudan, continue to kill and terrorise civilians.

The situation for children is particularly unbearable.  Four million have been displaced. Over 700,000 will suffer from the deadliest form of malnutrition this year.

Sudanese children have missed a year of school and face the fear of not knowing when they will receive their next meal.

The Sudanese Armed Force’s withdrawal of permission for cross-border deliveries of humanitarian aid from Adre in Chad is indefensible.

We call on the Sudanese authorities to honour their commitments to facilitate crossline and other cross-border routes for the delivery of life-saving assistance for the Sudanese people.

They need to remove the red tape and deliberate obstructionism which has prevented meaningful crossline assistance in recent months.

To the people of Sudan, who for nearly a year have been made to witness their country’s descent into near collapse: you have not been forgotten.

The situation in Sudan warrants a robust response from this Council and increased attention from the international community.

As we approach the holy month of Ramadan, we echo the Secretary-General’s call for an immediate ceasefire and we urge all parties to allow for unhindered cross-border and crossline humanitarian access.

We encourage international partners, including the AU, IGAD and regional states, as well as the UN’s Personal Envoy, to prioritise coordination of their efforts to end this conflict, and to reject attempts by the warring parties to pit different mediation tracks against each other.

President, it should not be for the military leadership of both the SAF or RSF to determine the political future of Sudan.

We call on them to give way to a civilian, transitional government that will fully respect the basic human rights of the Sudanese people.

I thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 March 2024.

On Wednesday 6 March, France, Germany and the UK (E3) gave a joint statement to the IAEA Board of Governors on Iran’s implementation of its obligations under its NPT Safeguards Agreement.

Statement delivered by Ambassador Delphine Hournau-Pouëzat, French permanent representative to the IAEA on behalf of E3:

Chair,

France, Germany, and the United Kingdom thank Director General Grossi for his report on the implementation of Iran’s NPT Safeguards Agreement contained in GOV/2024/8.

We commend the DG and the Secretariat for their continued professional, independent and impartial verification of Iran’s fulfilment of its safeguards obligations. We commend their repeated efforts to engage Iran to clarify information regarding the “correctness and completeness” of its declarations under its NPT Safeguards Agreement. Due to Iran’s prolonged failure to address outstanding safeguards issues, the Agency is unable to assure that Iran’s nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful.

Chair,

It has been five years since the Director General first reported evidence to the Board of possible undeclared nuclear material and activities at a number of locations in Iran. Since then, Iran has failed to resolve these long-standing concerns, despite numerous resolutions by the Board, most recently in November 2022. In that time, the number of instances where Iran has acted against its legal safeguards obligations has grown. Let us briefly recall these issues:

• Iran has yet again failed to provide any technically credible explanations regarding Turquzabad and Varamin, despite having promised the Agency further information in August 2023. It has been five years since the Turquzabad investigation was opened and three and a half years since the Varamin investigation was opened. We must ask Iran, then, whether any of the nuclear material and/or contaminated equipment used at these locations remains in its territory and is not included in its declaration.
• Iran refuses to implement Modified Code 3.1 – a legal obligation that Iran cannot unilaterally suspend or modify. Iran is not giving the Agency required design information for multiple new nuclear facilities, even as it begins construction. It is unacceptable that the Agency is forced to rely instead on commercially available satellite imagery to monitor these activities. This is particularly concerning given Iran’s history of constructing undeclared nuclear facilities. As the DG notes, Iran remains the only State with significant nuclear activities that is not implementing Modified Code 3.1 as part of its Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement.
• In September last year, Iran de-designated a number of experienced Agency inspectors and claimed that this was in response to action taken at the Board by some member states. This is a political move, described as “extreme and unjustified” by the Director General. Iran is obstructing the Agency’s ability to effectively conduct its verification activities in Iran. We echo the Director General’s strong condemnation and urge Iran to reverse it and to promptly re-designate those inspectors.

Chair,

Since the Board last met four months ago, no progress was made on implementation of the Joint Statement between the IAEA and Iran of 4 March 2023. That Joint Statement was agreed by Iran more than a year ago now, and it is clear that Iran has no intention to implement the commitments it made. We recall Iran also previously failed to implement the Joint Statements of 5 March 2022, 15 December 2021, 12 September 2021, and 26 August 2020. Let us be clear. Iran does not need new frameworks to co-operate with the Agency in order to resolve all outstanding safeguards issues. Such a framework already exists: the NPT Safeguards Agreement Iran signed and ratified, and the legally binding obligations it contains.

Chair,

On the long-standing nuclear material discrepancy at the Esfahan Uranium Conversion Facility (UCF), we note that Iran has corrected its accounting reports, and that these indicate that the amount of Uranium sent from Jaber Ibn Hayan Multipurpose Laboratory (JHL) to UCF was less than had been declared by Iran in 2003-2004. We note the Agency’s conclusion that this case “requires further consideration”. We expect Iran to fully co-operate with the Agency to clarify all outstanding questions. This is of particular concern as undeclared uranium metal experiments were conducted at the same laboratory in Iran between 1995 and 2002. This raises the question of the possible diversion of uranium metal.

Chair,

The Director General is unable to provide this Board and the wider international community the assurance that Iran’s nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful. Iran’s public statements regarding its technical capabilities to produce nuclear weapons should be of grave concern to us all. We echo the Director General in therefore questioning the “correctness and completeness” of Iran’s safeguards declarations. Iran’s comments are an unacceptable provocation and completely incompatible with Iran’s legal obligations under the NPT as a Non-Nuclear Weapon State.

Chair,

The Board has already adopted three resolutions on this matter. At the September 2023 Board, 63 member states joined a statement delivered by Denmark expressing deep concerns with Iran’s behaviour. Iran has still not implemented the essential and urgent actions contained in the November 2022 Resolution. As reported by the DG, Iran has not made any progress in resolving the outstanding safeguards issues. After so many missed opportunities and lost time, the need for the Board to hold Iran accountable to its legal obligations is long overdue. Iran must urgently, fully and unambiguously co-operate with the Agency. In the absence of decisive and substantive progress, the Board must be prepared to adopt another resolution at its next meeting, and to consider future action as necessary, including making a finding under Article 19 of Iran’s Safeguards Agreement. Iran cannot be allowed to evade its NPT safeguards obligations any further.

Chair,

We encourage the Director General to continue reporting to the Board of Governors and welcome making the report contained in GOV/2024/8 public. In its next report to the Board, we request the IAEA inform the Board whether it can exclude the possible presence of undeclared materials in other locations in Iran. We stress our unwavering support to the IAEA for their impartial and professional work on this issue.

Thank you, Chair.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2024.

France, Germany and the UK (E3) gave a joint statement to the IAEA Board of Governors on Iran’s implementation of its nuclear commitments under the JCPoA.

Chair, On behalf of France, Germany and the United Kingdom, I thank Director General Grossi for his latest report GOV/2024/7, and Deputy Director General Aparo for his technical briefing.

We are grateful to the Agency for the professional and impartial work of their team of inspectors and for their objective reporting on Iran’s nuclear programme. We encourage the Director General to keep the Board informed of all activities and developments requiring clarification by Iran.

Regrettably, the IAEA’s report again confirms that Iran continues on its escalatory path, in increasing violation of its JCPoA commitments. Over the past five years, Iran has pushed its nuclear activities to new heights that are unprecedented for a state without a nuclear weapons programme. Iran continues to refuse to reverse the de-designation of Agency inspectors and is failing to implement the Joint Statement of 4 March 2023. These actions cast reasonable doubt on Iran’s willingness to fully live up to its obligation and commitment to cooperate with the IAEA. This is shown by the IAEA not being able to provide assurance of the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme.

Chair, In the reporting period, Iran has continued enriching uranium far beyond what it committed to in the JCPoA. It now possesses 27 times the JCPoA limit of enriched uranium. The recent slight reduction of the stockpile of uranium enriched up to 60 % should not lead us to false hope and wrong conclusions: enrichment up to 60 % has continued unabatedly; increasing rates of production will soon see the stockpile increase again: and downblending has amplified the sharp increase of the stockpile of uranium enriched up to 20 %. Overall, Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium has increased by 30 % in just three and half months. Iran likely now has about three significant quantities of highly enriched uranium. The IAEA defines a significant quantity as the approximate amount of nuclear material from which the possibility of manufacturing a nuclear explosive device cannot be excluded.

Iran has also installed yet more advanced centrifuges and has laid ground for a further expansion of its enrichment capabilities, including at the underground Fordow site. We recall the significant work previously reported by the IAEA on uranium metal, which is a key step for the development of a nuclear weapon, and takes Iran dangerously close to actual weapons-related activity.

Furthermore, DG Grossi rightly reports that Iran has taken no meaningful steps to implement the Joint Statement. We note that Iran has taken no substantial action in response to the DG’s request to re-designate experienced Agency inspectors. Combined with Iran’s continued nonapplication of the Additional Protocol, this action by Iran seriously affects the IAEA’s verification and monitoring capabilities and activities. The DG states in his report that, Iran’s continued lack of transparency and its active rejection of verification measures provided for in the JCPoA means the Agency has definitively lost continuity of knowledge in a variety of fields. The IAEA does not know, for example, how many centrifuges Iran has and where they may be located. This information gap has had detrimental implications for the Agency’s ability to provide assurance of the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme.

Chair, The E3 have consistently worked towards a diplomatic solution that would permit Iran to return to full compliance with its international obligations and JCPoA commitments. Iran failed to prove its readiness for such a negotiated outcome by refusing reasonable proposals that were put on the table in March 2022 and again in August 2022, and has instead chosen to further advance its nuclear programme. We reiterate our call on Iran to halt its nuclear escalation. We strongly urge Iran to return to the limits imposed by the JCPoA, in particular regarding enrichment capabilities and activities; and to finally live up to the commitments it has made regarding transparency and cooperation with the IAEA necessary for effective verification and monitoring. We also urge Iran to re-apply all transparency measures that it stopped in February 2021 and that were agreed to in the 4 March 2023 Joint Statement between Iran and the IAEA, as well as to re-implement and swiftly ratify its Additional Protocol. Iran must now take serious and meaningful steps that show a genuine desire to de-escalate and to rebuild urgently needed trust between Iran and the international community. Recent public statements made in Iran regarding its technical capabilities to produce nuclear weapons go in the opposite direction and are all the more concerning and inconsistent with Iran’s legal obligations under the NPT.

Chair, The DG’s report makes very clear that Iran’s nuclear advances significantly harm international security and undermine the global non-proliferation architecture. We will continue consultations, alongside international partners, on how best to address increasing doubts about the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme. We remain committed to a diplomatic solution and stand ready to use all diplomatic levers available to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

Finally, we ask the Director General to keep the Board of Governors informed on the status of Iran’s nuclear programme well ahead of the next meeting in June 2024, and provide earlier updates as necessary. We also ask for the report to be made public.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2024.

At the OSCE FSC Security Dialogue, Ambassador Neil Holland speaks about the importance of Women, Peace and Security Agenda in the context of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Thank you, Mr Chair. And thank you panellists, for sharing your expertise on this important subject. It is absolutely right that we discuss the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda in the FSC, on the week that we mark International Women’s Day.

It is more than ten years since Russia sought to illegally annex Crimea and over two years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Events on the ground continue to demonstrate the relevance of Women, Peace and Security to the politico-military dimension. The WPS Agenda aims to recognise and empower women as integral stakeholders and decision makers in international security. We see this in Ukraine every day. As our Ukrainian colleague made clear, tens of thousands of women serve in the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the Territorial Defence Forces. Many more play crucial roles across society – including as medical professionals, first responders, aid workers – often in addition to being primary caregivers. We salute their courage and resilience in helping Ukraine secure a successful and sustainable peace.

Two years into Russia’s full-scale invasion, we continue to witness the disproportionate impact of war on women and girls. The WPS Agenda also aims to protect victims and survivors. This is why the UK is resolutely committed to holding all those responsible to account, including through our support for the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group. This was launched in May 2022 to reinforce Ukraine’s domestic investigations and the prosecution of core international crimes. As part of this work, a member of the UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative Team of Experts is working to support the Ukrainian Office of the Prosecutor General to implement its Conflict-Related Sexual Violence strategy. This includes helping to embed international guidelines and best practice, including on survivor-centred approaches, into the work of Ukrainian prosecutors and investigators.  We have also stepped up our assistance to the ICC. The international community and national authorities must work to uphold survivor’s rights and help bring perpetrators to justice.

At home, the UK is making progress towards enhancing women’s participation. The numbers of women serving in the armed forces have been steadily rising and we have worked hard to facilitate meaningful inclusion. This includes through the provision of flexible working schemes and gender-sensitive improvements to training and uniform.

In 2022, the Ministry of Defence announced a zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse. This is in addition to mandatory pre-deployment gender awareness training and annual refreshers on international humanitarian law.

At the OSCE, the UK and Belgium championed the annual voluntary report on WPS under the Code of Conduct (on Politico-Military Aspects of Security). We thank the many participating States which have already submitted returns and encourage others to use the questionnaire to help share best practice.

Mr Chair, the full, equal, meaningful and safe participation of women in all aspects and at all levels of security is essential to achieving better outcomes for peace and security.  This is not only the right thing to do – it also leads to more conflict-sensitive and strategic outcomes. And where militaries break international law, by targeting non-combatants including women and girls, we will hold the perpetrators to account. Thank you.