Tag: Foreign Office

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 19 September 2023.

The UK Government announced a further £5 million in funding to support Somalia’s Security Forces.

The UK Government has announced a further £5 million in funding for the United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) Trust Fund to support Somalia’s Security Forces.

The new funding was announced during a meeting between Somalia’s National Security Advisor, Hussein Sheikh Ali, and the UK’s Deputy National Security Adviser for International Affairs, Dame Sarah MacIntosh during her visit to Somalia last week.

The funding builds on the UK’s substantial contributions to date through the UNSOS Trust Fund, which provides non-lethal logistical support to the SSF, which will include food, shelter and lifesaving medevac support. UK funding will provide ongoing support to the operations against al-Shabaab, but also assist Somalia Security Forces to build capacity as they take on greater responsibility for security.

Deputy National Security Adviser, Dame Sarah MacIntosh, said:

The UK and Somalia security partnership is important for bringing stability and security to Somalia and the region.

The UK will continue to support Somali-led efforts to combat terrorism and restore stability in recaptured areas of the country.

The UK continues to support the Somali Government as they pursue a more stable and secure Somalia. UK-Somali collaboration across the security, economic and development sectors is delivering a brighter future for Somalis.

Notes to Editors

• Significant progress has been made in Somalia over the last decade. The international community must remain committed in support of Somalia’s aims for a sustainable, affordable and accountable security sector. The transition from ATMIS to Somali-led security remains our collective goal.
• The UK is providing bilateral support to Somalia as it steps up the fight against al-Shabaab. The UK is a partner of both the Somali Security Forces (SSF) and the United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) through the UNSOS Trust Fund.
• Since 2022 the UK has committed over £10 million in support of Somali Security Forces via the UNSOS Trust Fund.
• The UK also provides bilateral voluntary contributions for military stipends to ATMIS, providing over £47 million since 2022.
• Further information on the UK-Somalia development partnership can be found here.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 19 September 2023.

The UK has appointed Lieutenant Colonel Héloïse Goodley to support the UN’s mission to eradicate sexual violence in conflict. The appointment forms part of the UK Government’s commitment to preventing conflict related sexual violence.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 19 September 2023.

UK statement for the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Contemporary forms of Slavery. Delivered at the 54th UN Human Rights Council.

Thank you, Mr President,

We thank the Special Rapporteur for his ongoing efforts and his latest report on homelessness and contemporary forms of slavery.

Women and children are disproportionately affected by forms of exploitation and homelessness. Discriminatory laws and practices significantly increase the risks that they face. And as the report states: female-headed households constitute a staggering 70% of the world’s homeless or inadequately housed population.

The UK fully recognises that individuals who are homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless, may be more vulnerable to becoming victims of modern slavery. Particularly where they have associated support needs. We are fully committed to working with all partners to raise awareness, to prevention, and to protecting victims of modern slavery.

This year, the UK updated our Guidance on providing homelessness services to victims of modern slavery. This will help local authorities more effectively support victims. We hope that these efforts will improve understanding of the National Referral Mechanism and its interaction with statutory homelessness duties.

Special Rapporteur,

What more can be done to raise awareness and enhance our understanding of the linkages between homelessness and contemporary forms of slavery?

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 19 September 2023.

UK commitments will go towards unlocking billions in global finance and support developing countries invest to achieve sustainable development goals.

• Foreign Secretary announces programmes at the UN General Assembly to help achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals
• funding focuses on improving global financial system, including making it easier for developing countries to access funds and invest in their own sustainable development
• James Cleverly will also announce new UK support for climate preparedness and to improve access to education around the world

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly will today (Tuesday) set out new UK action to build a more inclusive international financial system to improve lives around the world at the UN General Assembly (UNGA).

Climate change, the threat of pandemics, and stagnant economic growth are some of the biggest challenges facing the world’s most vulnerable and require a united global effort to tackle. On his second day in New York the Foreign Secretary will make clear we should respond to these challenges through a strong and collective international system as he reasserts the UK’s commitment to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

Unlocking more finance from international financial institutions and the private sector will be critical if we are to achieve those goals and the UK is already playing key role by mobilising private investment, improving global tax systems and future-proofing for climate change – including through the UK’s recent $2 billion commitment to the Green Climate Fund.

The UK is announcing pledges and reforms that will unlock billions of pounds in global finance and support developing countries invest in their future to boost sustainable development goals.

As representatives of global governments gather for the Sustainable Development Goals Summit, the Foreign Secretary will announce new financial guarantees for Multilateral Development Banks to help our overseas aid go further and multiply our impact by unlocking more affordable loans.

Through one of these guarantees the UK will help unlock up to $1.8 billion of climate finance to support at risk populations across Asia and the Pacific in adapting to the impacts of climate change and increase their resilience to natural disasters. It will help accelerate their transition from fossil fuels to low carbon energy sources, demonstrating how sustainable economic growth and development can go hand-in-hand.

The Foreign Secretary will also announce another guarantee to provide urgent investments in quality education to tackle the global learning crisis.

New UK support will help unlock up to $1 billion in new financing for education for Lower Middle Income countries in Asia and Africa, where an estimated seven out of 10 children are unable to read a simple story by the age of 10. The International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd) will help increase school enrolment for the poorest and most marginalised children. It will enable countries to use education as a tool for sustainable development and focus on improving literacy, numeracy, and social skills, including through training teachers and developing curriculums.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said:

The extra finance needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals is estimated to be around $4 trillion annually. We urgently need bold global action to build a bigger, better and fairer international financial system that helps close this gap.

The UK played an instrumental role in establishing the Goals and we are committed to achieving them by 2030. Together with our international partners, we are going faster and further, to change the international financial system and make sure no one is left behind. The voice of the poorest and most vulnerable countries must be heard at the heart of the multilateral system.

The UK is also leading the way on making the global financial system more shock responsive. For example, the UK was the first to offer climate resilient debt clauses in loans from our Export Credit Agency, pausing repayments when a natural disaster or pandemic strikes. In the face of increasing global challenges, the Foreign Secretary is calling for this to become the rule, not the exception to allow affected countries to focus on recovery.

As part of our commitment to tackle climate change, the UK will also provide additional disaster risk financing support for the Caribbean, a region that is particularly vulnerable to natural disasters. The Foreign Secretary will announce the UK will join CCRIF SPC (formerly the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility), the Inter-American Development Bank, the Caribbean Development Bank and the Coca Cola Foundation to establish an affordable insurance scheme to increase the resilience of vital water and sanitation services. This will provide quick payouts to fund repairs following hurricanes and floods, restoring access to safe drinking water and preventing the spread of diseases.

Making sure countries have sustainable public finances is vital to delivering the Sustainable Development Goals. With the right support to strengthen domestic taxation and close loopholes, lower income countries could collectively raise an additional $260 billion.  But we also need a fairer system where existing global commitments on international tax are fully met so that the most vulnerable countries are not losing out on revenues that they should receive. The Foreign Secretary will announce a new UK funding package of £17 million to improve tax systems in developing countries so they can stop revenues leaking and can invest in their sustainable development.

The UK is also committing £3 million to support the increased use of standards in Commonwealth countries, helping reduce barriers to trade, increase economic stability, and decrease aid dependency, opening opportunities for international businesses, including those from the UK.

Further information

The Foreign Secretary is announcing today:

• the UK is providing a guarantee of up to $300 million to the Innovative Finance Facility for Climate in Asia and the Pacific (IFCAP). We estimate this will unlock $1.2 to $1.8 billion in additional climate financing over the next 5 years, meaning around a 4 to 6 time return of increased climate finance compared to our guarantee commitment.  The Innovative Finance Facility for Climate in Asia and the Pacific (IFCAP) is a multi-donor financing partnership facility set up by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) with the goal of scaling-up finance for accelerated action against climate change in Asia and the Pacific
• the UK will contribute up to £180 million of support to the International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd). This includes up to £95 million in grants and paid-in capital, and a contingent guarantee of up to £85 million. IFFEd will unlock up to $1 billion in affordable education finance, with the amount available subject to final confirmation of other donor support, alongside Sweden and the UK. As more donors join IFFEd, this amount will increase
• the UK will provide the Caribbean Water Utilities Insurance Collective (CWUIC) with a $25 million returnable investment to help water and sanitation companies in the Caribbean access affordable insurance
• new UK funding of £17 million to improve tax systems in developing countries
• a total of £3 million to support the increased use of standards in Commonwealth countries. The funding will be used for workshops and training, technical assistance, information exchange and toolkits to support the implementation of international standards amongst Commonwealth countries

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2023.

France, Germany, the UK and the US have issued a joint statement following Iran’s decision to withdraw the designation of several IAEA inspectors.

The text of the following statement was released by the permanent representatives to the IAEA of France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States in response to the IAEA Director General’s Statement on Verification in Iran.

On Saturday, the IAEA Director General issued a public statement noting that Iran has withdrawn the designation of several experienced Agency inspectors, including its most experienced experts with unique knowledge of uranium enrichment technology. Iran’s actions will undermine the Agency’s ability to carry out its safeguards mandate effectively. As the Director General makes clear in his statement, Iran’s actions are another step in the wrong direction and constitute an unnecessary blow to an “already strained relationship between the IAEA and Iran.

Iran continues to expand its nuclear activities. It is now also deliberately hampering the normal planning and conduct of Agency verification and monitoring activities in Iran required under Iran’s NPT Safeguards Agreement. This is at a time when the IAEA has serious, longstanding, and unresolved questions related to undeclared nuclear materials and activities in Iran that Iran has failed to address for more than four years. We join with, and support, the Director General in strongly condemning this latest Iranian “unprecedented and unilateral” measure that he reports will have a severe impact on the Agency’s ability to conduct its verification activities.

Iran must immediately reverse these inspector de-designations and fully cooperate with the Agency to enable them to provide assurances that Iran’s nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful. France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States will continue to stand in strong support of the IAEA and the international safeguards verification regime on which the world’s security relies.

In light of Iran’s actions, we will take note of any further information on the impact of the inspector de-designations on the Agency’s ability to fulfil its essential verification mandate in Iran. We will respond based on further reporting from the Director General.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2023.

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Americas and Caribbean, David Rutley is on a four-day visit to Ottawa, Louisiana and Texas.

• strengthening security and economic ties with key allies will be focus for Americas Minister on trip to Ottawa, Louisiana and Texas
• David Rutley will meet with key federal and provincial leaders to boost UK-Canadian collaboration on global security issues
• with more than $1 trillion invested in each other’s economies, visit will build on UK-US relationships that create thousands of jobs on both sides of the Atlantic

Deepening security ties with two of the UK’s closest allies and strengthening economic links that support jobs on both sides of the Atlantic will be the focus for the Americas Minister as he begins a four-day visit to Canada and the US today (Monday 18 September).

In his second visit in the role to Canada, David Rutley will meet with federal and provincial leaders over two days in the Canadian capital, including Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Rob Oliphant to discuss UK-Canadian collaboration on global security issues.

The UK and Canada share a unique intelligence and security relationship and Minister Rutley will discuss coordination on sanctions against Russia and encourage international cooperation and support for Ukraine to ensure they win the fight against Putin’s illegal invasion.

A two-day trip to Texas and Louisiana will follow when Minister Rutley continues a programme of visits to states across the US. He will champion the UK as a great investment and business partner and highlight the unrivalled security and defence ties between the two countries.

The UK and US already have more than $1 trillion invested in each other’s economies and the UK supports more jobs in America than any other country, with more than 110,000 Texans and almost 16,000 Louisianans working for British businesses.

Economic growth and the creation of better paid jobs is among the five priorities set out by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Minister Rutley will discuss with political and business leaders how the UK and US can boost cooperation in key sectors to deliver partnerships through the Atlantic Declaration, make their economies more resilient and create jobs.

Minister for the Americas and Caribbean David Rutley said:

There are few relationships that match the closeness of those that the UK shares with the USA and Canada and I am looking forward to boosting our deep and long-standing ties during my latest visit to North America.

During his time in Texas and Louisiana, Minister Rutley will travel to Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Austin where he will hold bilateral meetings with leading state-level political and business figures.

In Ottawa, Minister Rutley will also meet with Canadian students who are joining the Chevening Scholarship programme and will shortly be travelling to continue their studies at UK universities and build lifelong bonds with the UK.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2023.

Justin Addison (UK Delegation to the OSCE) speaks at the Forum about Russia’s attempts to sabotage the organisation.

At a time when the organisation faces many challenges, it is important that we continue our discussions on the security issues that affect us all.

Like last year, we met again here in the context of the continuing war of aggression by Russia against Ukraine. As others have noted, it was Russia who stood alone in blocking the consensus needed for an official Economic and Environmental Forum (EEF). But – as with so many of Russia’s similar attempts – it again failed to stop the rest of us from gathering to address the important security issues of the day.

Russia has told this forum several times how committed it is to the work of the second dimension. Indeed it should be. Though it may behave like it is, Russia is not immune from these threats. The Russian Arctic, for example, is warming at a disproportionate rate, causing sea level rises and agricultural shifts. Last year, deadly forest fires burned across large swathes of Siberia, as those tasked with putting them out were diverted to the illegal war in Ukraine. And Russia’s infamous levels of industrial pollution not only degrade its own environment and poisons its own people, but also leach into neighbouring countries as well. These issues should be at the forefront of their minds. And yet here we are, experiencing the latest example of their indifference and short-sightedness. As the rest of the OSCE’s membership recognises the need to address these topics, Russia remains isolated as saboteurs of this organisation, and poor judges of its membership’s resolve.

This indifference also extends to the world’s most vulnerable. As we heard yesterday, Russia’s sudden withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, and the consequent spike in global food prices, will cost lives around the world – further destabilising economies and putting people at risk of starvation. To address this issue, the UK looks forward to convening an international food security summit in London in November.

The issues we have discussed over the past two days are important security topics, relevant to all of us. But they are more pressing to some participating States than to others. As we heard, climate change, for example, is particularly evident in Central Asia, where temperatures are forecast to rise disproportionately, increasing risks of floods from glacier melt, as well as droughts and wildfires. Water security, heavily impacted by climate change as well as actions in neighbouring states, is a top priority for this region. Russia’s blocking of the EEF decision not only demonstrates its disregard for these security issues, but also dismisses the concerns of its own neighbourhood.

So we commend again the Chair, and indeed all states here, for not allowing the organisation to be at the mercy of those who wish to do it harm. The OSCE plays a critical role in European and Eurasian security and must be defended as it continues its work supporting States to build resilience to security, economic and climatic shocks.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2023.

The UK’s Statement for the Interactive Dialogue with the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. Delivered during the 54th UN Human Rights Council.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2023.

Ms Lisa Bandari has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Portuguese Republic in succession to Mr Chris Sainty.

Ms Lisa Bandari has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Portuguese Republic in succession to Mr Chris Sainty. Ms Bandari will take up her appointment during January 2024.

Curriculum vitae

Dates	Role
2021 to 2022	FCDO, Deputy Director for India and HMG India Coordinator
2017 to 2020	Department for Exiting the EU, Deputy Director for Ongoing EU Business and Third Country Preparation
2014 to 2016	Nairobi, Director of Corporate Services
2011 to 2014	FCO, Policy Planners, Team Leader for Asia Pacific and Africa Strategy
2010 to 2011	Aga Khan Foundation Afghanistan, Director of Policy and External Relations
2008 to 2010	Kabul, Head of Internal Political Section
2007	Pre-posting training (including Farsi language training)
2005 to 2006	FCO/Home Office, Head of UK Government Forced Marriage Unit
2004 to 2005	FCO, Bosnia & Herzegovina Desk Officer

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2023.

Foreign Secretary to outline vision at UNGA for using Artificial Intelligence to speed up development in the world’s poorest nations.