Tag: Foreign Office

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 9 November 2023.

Ambassador Neil Holland thanks the OSCE’s Special Representative on Combatting Trafficking in Human Beings for their work on technology and supply chains, and in response to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.

Thank you, Special Representative, for this report, and congratulations on your appointment. The UK and I personally look forward to working closely with you and your team.

We welcome your office’s leadership in coordinating anti-trafficking efforts over the last year. Conflict, humanitarian crises and instability have left individuals at risk of exploitation. Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has continued to cause mass migration, increasing the vulnerability of many women and children to trafficking and exploitation.  It is important to tackle all aspects of security threats from the flow of people, which is why the UK was pleased to be able to financially support your office’s earlier work to respond to the increasing risk of trafficking in migration flows.

It is important we continue to monitor the risk of trafficking as a result of the conflict, and adjust our response accordingly. We were pleased to welcome your office to the UK recently to deliver a workshop on enhancing anti-trafficking prevention amid mass migration flows in the UK. This workshop, as with others delivered across the region, was an important opportunity to consider efforts so far to protect Ukrainian refugees and identify what more we need to do.

We are grateful for the previous Special Representative’s visit to the UK last year to carry out an in-depth review of the UK’s response to modern slavery, and the valuable recommendations that came from it. Since then, the UK Government has continued to strengthen our cooperation with key partners, including through a Joint Communique with Albania and a Joint Action Plan with Romania.

The UK recognises that the internet is a key enabler of human trafficking, particularly the sexual exploitation of women and girls. We will continue to work with international partners to tackle online exploitation and to safeguard victims. The UK’s Online Safety Legislation will require online companies to take proactive steps to prevent, identify, and remove content linked to criminal activity, including sexual exploitation and human trafficking.

We were pleased to be able to support the project that delivered the recent study “Mapping the online landscape of risks of trafficking in human beings on sexual services websites across the OSCE region”. This demonstrates the central role online platforms play in human trafficking and addresses important information gaps.

Elsewhere, eliminating forced labour in global supply chains remains a key international priority for the UK. We support the work of your office in building partnerships between the public sector and financial institutions. Recognising the potential of these partnerships, the UK engaged closely with experts to commission research to understand the interface between modern slavery and global flows of capital. This published research offers a practical roadmap that Capital Market Actors, including investment banks and development finance institutions, can adopt to address modern slavery within their value chains using their leverage and influence. I invite colleagues to read it.

The Alliance Conference this year built upon last year’s focus on migration risks and the needs of victims, and highlighted the need for increased national leadership and political will to ensure an effective international response to trafficking. That is why the UK is pleased to support the Global Commission on Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking, led by Theresa May. The Commission will inject greater political momentum to drive this issue back up the global agenda. It will do so by increasing coordination and cooperation across international organisations, and we welcome your office’s shared commitment to do this.

Special Representative, thank you for your report. We look forward to working with you in your new role and continuing to support your office in its impressive work to combat trafficking.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 9 November 2023.

Ambassador Neil Holland says that Russia is attacking Ukrainian civilians, monuments, religious sites, museums, and art galleries.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 9 November 2023.

The UK delivered a statement during Germany’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 9 November 2023.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has travelled to Saudi Arabia and will hold high-level talks with regional Foreign Ministers.

• Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has travelled to Saudi Arabia after the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Tokyo
• He will hold high-level talks with regional Foreign Ministers in diplomatic efforts to prevent escalation and work towards a two-state solution
• He will push for a collective effort to get lifesaving aid into Gaza as quickly as possible, through as many routes as possible.

The Foreign Secretary will reiterate the UK’s commitment to prevent regional escalation to the crisis and increasing the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza on a visit to Saudi Arabia on 9 November.

James Cleverly will meet with Foreign Ministers from the Middle East, who are gathering in Saudi Arabia ahead of a League of Arab States emergency meeting on Gaza on Saturday.

He is expected to raise efforts to prevent wider regional escalation, including in Lebanon and Yemen, and offer continued UK support to bolster deterrence and counter threats from malign groups in the region.

The Foreign Secretary will also discuss initiatives to significantly increase the volume of aid reaching civilians in Gaza, including medicines, fuel and water, and ensure a pipeline of funds and supplies to support the relief effort. He will reaffirm the UK’s support for further humanitarian pauses in the fighting as soon as possible to deliver aid and provide a crucial window for hostages – including British nationals – to be released.

In his meetings with counterparts, the Foreign Secretary will also reiterate the UK’s condemnation of the rise in settler violence and call for Israel to hold those responsible to account to improve the situation in the West Bank. He will outline the UK’s support for reinvigorating diplomatic efforts towards a achieving a viable two-state solution.

His visit to Saudi Arabia follows on from his attendance at the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting, where attendees agreed on the urgent need to allow humanitarian pauses to facilitate urgently needed assistance, civilian movement and release of hostages.

The Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly said:

I have been focused on diplomatic efforts to secure the release of hostages, to ensure that foreign nationals can leave Gaza, to deter any escalation regionally and to facilitate the flow of humanitarian aid at scale.

I will continue this essential work in Saudi Arabia where I will meet with a number of my counterparts in the region to explore how we achieve those aims quickly and also look to the future of a lasting, peaceful, and prosperous two-state solution for both Israelis and Palestinians.

His visit follows the UK’s delivery of vital equipment and lifesaving aid to support civilians in Gaza and a £30 million increase in UK assistance to Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Since Hamas’ terrorist atrocities 7 October, UK government ministers have been engaging with countries across the Middle East, as well as the international community. The Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and Defence Secretary have all visited the region in recent weeks to push for lifesaving aid to get into Gaza, support the return of British nationals, prevent dangerous regional escalation and back Israel’s right to self-defence.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 8 November 2023.

Statement by Chanaka Wickremasinghe, UK Legal Adviser to the UN, at the UN Security Council meeting on Libya.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 8 November 2023.

The UK delivered a statement during Colombia’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 8 November 2023.

Indo-Pacific Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan is visiting New Zealand, the Cook Islands, Fiji and Tonga from 8-15 November.

• Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, to visit New Zealand, the Cook Islands, Fiji and Tonga to build on partnerships with Pacific Island Countries
• The Minister will participate in the 52nd Pacific Islands Forum’s Dialogue Partners Day in Rarotonga boosting UK-Pacific collaboration with support for the 2050 Strategy for a Blue Pacific Continent
• Visit will be the first for FCDO Minister to Tonga since the High Commission re-opened in 2020

The UK will strengthen partnerships with Pacific Islands Forum members to tackle climate change, increase access to finance, and navigate shared global challenges.

As Dialogue Partner to the Pacific Islands Forum, the UK is a steadfast supporter of Pacific priorities. Minister Trevelyan will underscore the UK’s support for the Pacific Islands Forum’s 2050 Strategy for a Blue Pacific Continent and commitment to deliver on regional priorities, like adapting to climate change, strengthening cyber security, and boosting economic development. She will participate in the 52nd Pacific Islands Forum in Rarotonga, in the Cook Islands, on 10 November, which enhances cooperation between the countries and territories of Oceania.

UK Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Anne-Marie Trevelyan said:

The UK is committed to strengthening our long-term partnership with our friends in the Pacific, working alongside them to deliver the 2050 Strategy for a Blue Pacific Continent.

We will continue our close collaboration with the Pacific Islands Forum, listening to the voices and experiences of our partners in the Pacific.

Together we will advocate for the issues that matter most, ranging from our work to mitigate the impact of climate change to support for the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) agenda.”

While in New Zealand, the Minister will meet with Pasifika experts and New Zealand businesses to understand their priorities and challenges. The UK-New Zealand trading relationship was worth £3 billion in 2022, with a free trade agreement signed in 2021. The visit comes after New Zealand held general elections in October 2023.

During the visit to Fiji, the Minister will meet local communities and see the best of British-supported businesses promoting innovation in Fiji’s agriculture industry like Tavioka Organics.

In Tonga, the Minister will meet Foreign Minister, Hon. Fekitamoeloa ‘Utoikamanu, and members of the Tongan Cabinet to discuss shared challenges like climate change. At an engagement with Chevening and Commonwealth scholars, she will celebrate the people-to-people links between the UK and the Pacific Islands. She will visit the launch of an upcoming project, ‘Climate and Education Sector Initiative’, run by Save the Children Australia and Tonga’s Ministry of Education and funded by Great Challenge Fund and Global Fund for Education, a project to increase climate resilience. As part of this visit she will witness inclusive education for visually impaired students, and a rugby initiative with equipment donated by ‘SOS Kit Aid’, which supports schoolchildren including girls rugby in Tonga.

The UK will continue working closely with Pacific Island countries as part of its long-term commitment to the region and support for a free and open Indo-Pacific.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 November 2023.

H.E. Ms. KAMIKAWA Yoko, Minister for Foreign Affairs and H.E. Mr. KIHARA Minoru, Minister of Defence of Japan, the Rt Hon James Cleverly, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs and the Rt Hon Grant Shapps, Secretary of State for Defence of the UK held the fifth Japan-UK Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting on 7 November 2023 in Tokyo.

Ministers  reaffirmed the UK and Japan’s Global Strategic Partnership, as set out in the Hiroshima Accord. We are connected by our shared values and principles of freedom, democracy, rule of law, fundamental human rights, and open and fair trade. We commit to stand shoulder to shoulder to tackle the unprecedented global challenges we face through increasing global competition, climate change and rapid technological developments. Acknowledging that the security and prosperity of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific are inseparable, we commit to further strengthen our security capabilities to help safeguard global peace and stability. We are each other’s closest security partners in Europe and Asia.

Ministers affirmed our commitment to maintain and strengthen the international order based on the rule of law and to uphold the principles of the UN Charter. This includes our commitment to the vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific; our call for China to act as a responsible member of the international community; condemnation of North Korea nuclear and ballistic missile programmes; Iran’s proliferative and destabilising behaviour; condemnation of Hamas’ terrorist attack and of support for Israel’s right to self-defence in line with international law; and our determination to support Ukraine for as long as it takes in the face of Russian aggression.

Ministers noted substantive progress in the UK-Japan partnership since the agreement of the Hiroshima Accord and reaffirmed their commitment to deliver all aspects of the Accord. This progress includes:

• The UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP);
• The ratification of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) and our ever-deeper security and defence relationship, including the flagship Global Combat Air Programme;
• The first UK-Japan Strategic Economic Policy and Trade Dialogue;
• The signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation on Critical Minerals;
• And just today, we launched a new People-to-People Initiative to bring our citizens closer together.

In particular, the Ministers discussed the ever-deepening defence and security relationship between Japan and the UK and:

• Committed to utilise the RAA to facilitate greater interoperable, resilient and cross-domain defence and security cooperation, including positive progress on the application of Asset Protection Measures;
• Endorsed the progress made under GCAP to develop a next-generation fighter by 2035 and to identify further potential areas of joint development and cooperation;
• Committed to the deployment of the UK’s Carrier Strike Group to the Indo-Pacific in 2025;
• acknowledged the importance of the activities of the UK’s two offshore patrol vessels being deployed to the Indo-Pacific on a permanent basis as a contribution to a rules-based maritime order;
• Recognised steady progress in cyber cooperation following the establishment of the Japan-UK Cyber Partnership, committed to work together on outer space, and to strengthen cooperation in strategic communication in response to disinformation;
• Committed to coordinate closely in contingency planning for potential evacuations;
• Concurred to collaborate closely on Economic Security issues, including through the Economic Security Dialogue to enhance supply chain resilience, international standards, coerced technology transfers and intellectual property theft, and export controls.
• Affirmed the  commitment to consult each other on important regional and global security issues

We finish today united in our shared belief in the importance of our Global Strategic Partnership to create a more peaceful and secure world. As the security and prosperity of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific  are inseparable, the goals of our strategic partnership are shared. We resolve to deepen and strengthen our partnership to face today and tomorrow’s challenges.

The full Joint statement of the 2+2 can be accessed here.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 November 2023.

Minister for Europe, Leo Docherty visits Lithuania and Latvia to reinforce UK cooperation on regional security and support for Ukraine.

• Following the success of the NATO Summit in Vilnius in July, Minister Leo Docherty will visit the two Baltic nations to show the UK’s leadership in tackling threats to European security.
• He will discuss plans to bolster NATO’s Eastern Flank before attending a NATO Cyber Conference in Berlin.
• Visit will also reiterate collective support for Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression and enable discussions on the situation in the Middle East and preventing regional escalation.

Minister for Europe, Leo Docherty, will visit Lithuania and Latvia to underline the UK’s continued commitment to the Baltic States’ security and discuss the strengthening of support to Ukraine.

During meetings in Vilnius with Lithuanian Deputy Foreign Minister, Jonas Survila, and the Presidential National Security Advisor, Kęstutis Budrys, the Minister will discuss growing cooperation, from the training of Ukrainian forces to closer collaboration on regional security and tackling illegal migration. He will also highlight the need for a collective effort to prevent the tragic situation in the Middle East from escalating more widely and support humanitarian aid entering Gaza.

The visit follows the NATO Summit which Vilnius hosted in July, where the Prime Minister outlined the UK’s leading role in protecting regional security in the face of increased threats across Europe.

In Riga, Minister Docherty will meet Latvian Parliamentary Secretary, Reinis Brusbārdis, and the Minister of Energy, Kaspars Melnis, to discuss the importance of energy security, and how the two countries can work together to address Russian malign influence.

Minister for Europe, Leo Docherty said:

The Baltic States are on the frontline of Russia’s malign activity, and the UK is steadfast in our commitment to supporting them defend their freedom and security.

Through NATO and the Joint Expeditionary Force, we are working with Latvia and Lithuania to keep the region and our allies safe, including through a united effort to prevent further conflict and terrorism in the Middle East.

More than 20,000 British troops will be deployed to the region next year, where they will take part in large-scale, multi-country exercises, as well as carrying out air policing and cold weather training.

The UK has a long-standing relationship with both Latvia and Lithuania across all arms of the military, including cooperation in NATO and the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF).

The Minister is also expected to visit the Hill of Crosses, an important cultural site symbolic of Lithuanian identity and peaceful resistance. In Latvia, he will lay a wreath at both the Commonwealth War Grave in Jelgava and at Riga’s Freedom Monument, which commemorates those who fought for Latvia’s independence over 100 years ago.

Later in the week, the Minister will go on to represent the UK at the first NATO Cyber Defence Conference taking place in Berlin. The gathering will discuss the Alliance’s ability to adapt to evolving cyber threats and the strengthening of its ability to detect, prevent and respond to malicious cyber activities.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 November 2023.

The UK delivered a statement during Cabo Verde’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the Human Rights Council in Geneva.