Tag: Foreign Office

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 28 September 2026.

Statement by Ambassador Kate Foster, UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN Security Council meeting on the West Bank.

Throughout High-Level Week, we heard a clear and repeated commitment to achieving a two-state solution.

It remains the only credible path forwards to a better future for Israelis and Palestinians, founded on lasting peace and security for both.

Yet the two-state solution is at risk of being destroyed by the facts on the ground.

Mr President, my Prime Minister has been clear: the 7th October 2023 terrorist attack on Israel was monstrous, and he has condemned Hamas’ actions in the strongest terms.

The United Kingdom continues to stand with Israel in the face of ongoing threats, including from Iran.

But my Prime Minister has also been clear that this does not justify the Government of Israel’s actions in the West Bank and Gaza.

In the West Bank, Israel continues to expand settlements at pace, in violation of international law, and contrary to Resolution 2334.

We are approaching a point of no return with the E1 settlement project.

We welcome the reports that the deadline for bids may be delayed. 

But a temporary delay is not enough. 

It would sever East Jerusalem from the West Bank and endanger the viability of a two-state solution.

This project must not go ahead.

Alongside the rapid expansion of settlements, we have also seen an alarming increase in settler violence.

The Government of Israel must prevent violence in all of its forms and ensure proper accountability for perpetrators. 

Pardons and decisions not to bring charges against Israeli soldiers who have committed violent crimes sends the opposite message. 

The United Kingdom is acting with international partners to protect the two-state solution.  

Together with partners, we have announced our intention to legislate to ban the import of goods from illegal settlements, and bring in sanctions against those who finance, support, and facilitate illegal settlements.

We have been clear that we view the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land as unlawful.

We continue to support the Palestinian Authority’s reform agenda and welcome its commitments to hold elections.

Credible, transparent, and reformed public institutions remain essential to a future Palestinian state.

We welcome the recent extension by Israel of correspondent banking relationships. 

But we need urgent action to reverse policies which are crippling the West Bank economy. 

Further measures must include:

The release of clearance revenues to the Palestinian Authority;

Ensuring sustainable and predictable banking arrangements;

Easing movement and access restrictions, facilitating trade, and improving access to employment and economic opportunities.

Turning to Gaza, the United Kingdom remains fully committed to implementation of Resolution 2803 and the 20-Point Peace Plan.

Hamas must decommission its weapons, dismantle its terrorist infrastructure, and completely relinquish its control of Gaza.

The United Kingdom has pledged $117 million in humanitarian and early recovery assistance this year. 

But aid cannot save lives if it cannot reach people. 

With another winter approaching, urgent action is needed.

Last week, my Foreign Secretary, alongside Jordan and Qatar, brought partners together behind a Call to Action on humanitarian access and healthcare in Gaza.

The focus must now be on turning that shared commitment into tangible improvements for people on the ground.

Israel must lift all restrictions on humanitarian aid, stop the killing in Gaza, and withdraw.

Mr President, we are at a critical juncture. 

The peoples of Israel and Palestine deserve a better future.

This Council must do all we can to protect the two-state solution, bolster stability in the West Bank, and bring the suffering in Gaza to an end.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 28 September 2026.

Statement by Helen King, UK Ambassador to ECOSOC, at the UN high-level meeting on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.

As we gather today, families in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are losing loved ones to Ebola.

Thousands of people have died.

Health workers are risking their lives every single day.

And communities already living with conflict and displacement are facing yet another crisis.

Outbreaks spread when we fail to act early enough.

The lessons are clear.

We know what works: strong surveillance, trusted local health systems, scientific innovation, and rapid access to finance.

And we know that no country can deliver these things alone.

That’s why the UK is supporting the Africa-led Ebola response, investing £78 million to strengthen surveillance and frontline health services.

Through the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, we are supporting the development of five vaccine candidates, with African and UK science partners.

On Monday of this week, the UK announced that it would invest up to £100 million in CEPI’s 3.0 strategy, which will support the development of new vaccines to combat pandemic and epidemic threats, including Ebola.

But we know that that is not enough.

Globally, we need stronger cooperation, faster information- sharing, and earlier financing so that countries can act before a crisis spirals out of control.

That is why the UK supports the development of the World Bank’s Day Zero Financing Framework.

This will enable countries to access financing for vaccines and treatments when the warning signs first appear.

It is also why we are committed to enhancing multilateral cooperation on health security.

This includes completing negotiations on the WHO Pandemic Agreement’s Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing System.

Because preparedness is about solidarity.

COVID-19 taught us that diseases do not respect borders.

And the next pandemic will not either.

So let us act on the lessons learned and invest in preparedness to help build a safer and healthier future for all.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 25 September 2026.

Statement by Ambassador Kate Foster, UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN Security Council meeting on Refugees.

As we heard today, over 100 million people are forcibly displaced worldwide. 

For more than two thirds of refugees, displacement is not a passing crisis. 

It lasts five years or more, with no durable solution in sight. 

A childhood spent entirely in a camp.

A home never returned to. 

A family still waiting to rebuild.

Seventy-five years after the adoption of the Refugee Convention, this is the clearest possible case for change. 

The United Kingdom supports UNHCR’s 50 by 35 vision. 

Our focus must be on helping people move beyond prolonged displacement, rather than leaving them trapped in exile, unable to rebuild their lives.

But delivering that shift requires change.

It starts with protection. 

We need asylum systems that work for refugees, host communities, and the Member States that sustain them.

That means strengthening our collective ability to distinguish fairly between refugees and migrants. 

It also means confronting organised criminal networks that profit from dangerous journeys. 

To “protect protection”, asylum systems must be credible, effective, and trusted by the people and governments that sustain them.

Change also means backing nationally led solutions and development interventions. 

The United Kingdom is putting that into practice.

We are working with international financial institutions to direct development finance towards refugee-hosting countries. 

That helps ensure host communities are not left to carry the burden alone and supports the inclusion of refugees into national systems. 

We are also working in more than 50 countries, including efforts to bring nearly 200,000 refugee children into national education systems.

But fundamentally, we must confront why people are fleeing in the first place. 

War. Instability. Repression. 

This Council exists to address precisely those threats.

Yet too often we respond to displacement rather than helping to prevent it. 

In Sudan, that means uniting behind a ceasefire to end the conflict driving displacement.

In Syria, it means supporting stability that enables safe and sustainable return.

In Yemen, it means de-escalating a conflict that is once again driving displacement and humanitarian suffering, and recommitting to a UN-led political process.

This Council has the tools to address the root causes of displacement. 

What it needs is the political will to use them.

The seventy-fifth anniversary of the Refugee Convention is the moment to show that this system can adapt. 

The UK will use this anniversary year, and the road to the Global Refugee Forum in 2027, to work with UNHCR, international financial institutions, and Member States, to keep the system credible, sustainable, and fit for today’s world.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 25 September 2026.

Tens of thousands of Yemenis displaced by escalating Houthi violence will be supported by new UK funding.

Tens of thousands of civilians in Government of Yemen-controlled areas who have been displaced by escalating Houthi violence will be supported by new UK funding, announced today in response to the declining humanitarian situation in Yemen.

Delivered through the UN emergency appeal for Yemen, the £10m package will provide access to child nutrition and food supplies, as well as emergency healthcare for women and children and vaccines to protect against life-threatening diseases.

More than 130,000 Yemenis are estimated to have been displaced following the recent escalation in conflict, where over two weeks of renewed Houthi aggression has deepened the suffering for the most vulnerable. The UK is acting to respond.

Minister for the Middle East, Stephen Doughty said:

“The Houthis’ decision to escalate the conflict in Yemen is having a devastating impact. It attempts to undermine the stability of the region and has already cost civilian lives.

“The humanitarian situation that is unfolding is catastrophic, with many displaced. Today’s package of support will provide essential access to food, healthcare and nutrition support for the most vulnerable Yemenis impacted by the recent escalation.

“We remain committed to working with the Government of Yemen, humanitarian partners and international partners to protect civilians, preserve humanitarian delivery and return to a political process. 

“This government’s position is clear – the Houthis must cease in their attacks and urgently engage with a UN negotiated process.”

The Minister for the Middle East, Stephen Doughty, spoke with the Yemeni Prime Minister on Tuesday [22 September] and met with the Vice President of the Presidential Leadership Council, Dr Abdullah Al-Alimi Bawazeer, during his visit to the UN General Assembly this week. He reiterated the UK’s support for the internationally recognised Government of Yemen and stressed the need for sustained international assistance to those affected by the conflict.

The UK condemns the Houthis’ resumption of hostilities following years of efforts to secure progress through dialogue. This government has been clear that the Houthis must end their attacks immediately and allow safe, unimpeded humanitarian access.

The UK is coordinating efforts to support regional stability and is working closely with international partners to secure a strong political response. This includes via multilateral forums, where the UK joined Bahrain in calling an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council following the latest Houthi escalation earlier this month and raising the conflict at the UNSC.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 24 September 2026.

Statement by Chris Elmore MP, Minister for the Americas, Multilateral, and Human Rights, at the High-level Plenary Meeting to Address the Existential Threats Posed by Sea-level Rise.

The United Kingdom welcomes the adoption of the UN Declaration on Sea-Level Rise, and thanks Australia and Cabo Verde for their leadership as co-facilitators.

For many countries represented in this room, sea-level rise is not a distinct threat; it is a present reality.

A reality that affects homes, livelihoods, and the future of entire communities.

This declaration, the first United Nations membership-wide political response on sea-level rise, has shown that the international community can come together to address one of the greatest challenges of our time.

Today’s adoption is a visible demonstration of international support for communities most vulnerable to its impact.

The United Kingdom welcomes the declaration’s grounding in the best available science, and its recognition of the risks posed by sea-level rise. 

We also welcome its focus on adaptation, resilience, and practical cooperative action.

Throughout these negotiations, the United Kingdom has worked constructively towards a balanced outcome that supports the priorities of small island developing states while protecting important principles on climate governance, finance, and international law. 

We welcome the continued primacy of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement. 

The United Kingdom recognises the importance of the legal dimensions of sea-level rise, including continuity of statehood and maritime zones.

We reaffirm the importance of implementing international law, as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Low-lying states are facing an urgent and unprecedented threat from rising sea levels. 

That is why we have recently announced a significant change in policy, with a starting point to continue to recognise statehood.

Whether a state lost some or even all of its land to sea-level rise, we will ensure we consider the circumstances in each case, including the wishes of the people of the affected state.

And the United Kingdom’s £330 million pledge to the ninth replenishment of the Global Environment Facility that the Foreign Secretary announced this week is a further demonstration of our commitment to action.

This new funding will help the GEF continue to address global challenges, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preventing biodiversity loss, with increased support for vulnerable SIDS and LDCs. 

Today’s declaration is an important step.

The task now is to turn shared commitment into practical action.

The communities most affected by sea-level rise deserve nothing less.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 24 September 2026.

More Palestinians are set to receive vital aid as a result of a major new package of UK support announced by the Foreign Secretary today at the UN General Assembly.

• UK support will help provide healthcare, clean water, sanitation and other essential services for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.
• Funding will include support for medical consultations, rehabilitation for children with blast injuries, safe water provision and vital mental health services.
• Comes as the UK convenes partners with Jordan and Qatar to drive action on humanitarian access and Gaza’s recovery.

More Palestinians are set to receive vital aid as a result of a major new package of UK support announced by the Foreign Secretary today at the UN General Assembly.

Following the reset of its approach to Israel and Palestine earlier this month, the UK has brought together a coalition of partners at UNGA and set out plans for humanitarian support.

The £88m package of funding will help deliver essential healthcare, clean water, sanitation and hygiene services, waste management and protection support to people affected by the conflict in both Gaza and the West Bank.

The announcement comes as the UK co-hosts, alongside Jordan and Qatar, a meeting of senior government ministers at the UN General Assembly focused on driving action on humanitarian access, healthcare and recovery in Gaza. The event will bring together regional partners, the United Nations, civil society, Palestinian representatives, and international donors to discuss practical steps to improve the delivery of lifesaving assistance.

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said:

It is vital that civilians in Gaza have unhindered access to aid.

The UK is pledging a major new package of aid to provide much needed healthcare support to those desperately in need.

We urge the Government of Israel to listen to our Call to Action and take steps to end its unacceptable restrictions on Gaza.

UK-funded support is expected to enable: 

• Medical consultations for up to 900,000 people through UK-supported healthcare facilities.
• Rehabilitation and prosthetic treatment for 1,000 children with blast injuries.
• Solid waste management services for up to 900,000 people.
• Safe water provision through emergency water trucking for 150,000 people.
• Mental health and psychosocial support for 21,000 people.

Since October 2023, UK humanitarian support has helped deliver sustained food assistance to more than 1.4 million people across the Palestinian Territories and improved water, sanitation and hygiene services for more than 830,000 people.

The UK continues to work with international partners to support humanitarian access, protect civilians and lay the foundations for Gaza’s recovery.

Notes to Editors:

• The UK has committed more than £88 million in humanitarian and early recovery support for Palestinians in the current financial year.  The UK’s bilateral ODA budget for Palestine for FY 26/27 is £127m. This figure was published in July 2026 as part of the FCDO’s planned ODA programme country and regional allocations.
• The package includes support previously announced through UNRWA and the UN Horizon Fund, as well as new humanitarian funding.
• The UK, Jordan and Qatar are convening partners at the UN General Assembly to discuss humanitarian access, healthcare provision and recovery in Gaza.
• UK-funded programmes support healthcare, water and sanitation, protection services and early recovery activities across Gaza and the Palestinian Territories.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 24 September 2026.

Press statement by the co-hosts UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas, and Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs H.E. Dr Musalia Mudavadi of Kenya on the security risks of the intensifying climate and nature crisis.

We, the Foreign Secretary of the UK, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, and the Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs of Kenya co-hosted yesterday a meeting of Foreign Ministers to underscore the security risks of the intensifying climate and nature crisis. 

Unprecedented wildfires, droughts, crop failures, and extreme heat are profoundly impacting the resilience of communities, economies and ecosystems around the world. Many of the communities threatened or affected by fragility or conflict, or facing severe humanitarian needs, are particularly vulnerable to cope with and adapt to the climate crisis.

Recent months have been characterised by extremes including record July sea surface temperatures, the warmest July on record for North America, Africa and Asia, and sustained heatwaves in Europe.  This is already disrupting agricultural production and supply chains, with implications for food security and economic resilience. El Nino is expected to exacerbate existing vulnerabilities including those relating to health, food and water security. The horrific glacier collapse in Nepal causing deaths and many missing people is unfortunately an ominous harbinger of what lies in store if we leave the climate crisis unaddressed.

As we discussed today, the impacts of global ecosystem degradation are becoming more acute and systemic. We are deeply concerned that this is occurring across all regions, with a realistic possibility that some ecosystems will start to collapse from 2030. Cascading and compounding risks are likely to include geopolitical instability, economic insecurity, conflict and displacement and migration and increased resource competition. 

As an international community, we have made important strides in tackling climate change and nature loss including through initiatives on climate, peace and security. However as recent events make clear, and with devastating impacts from El Nino to come, we need to go further to meet these challenges and ensure the international system is able to anticipate and respond to climate shocks. We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to the Paris Agreement and its strengthened implementation to address the concerning gap between current emissions trajectories and those required to keep 1.5C in reach, and to the swift, full and effective implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework. And we commit to working together directly and at international and regional gatherings to strengthen action.

We:

1. Regard the climate and nature crisis as a national and global security threat. Tackling the causes and consequences is essential to safeguarding the security, stability and resilience of our societies for future generations;
2. Commit to analysis and horizon scanning on climate and nature-related risks within our respective national and regional security systems;
3. Will build on the success of existing initiatives, commit to further sharing of analysis, strengthening of cooperation and, where appropriate joint risk assessments, scenario and contingency planning on the security implications of accelerating climate change and nature loss;
4. Commit to working together to address urgent transboundary risks that require collective action including to anticipate and respond to climate shocks and mitigate the impact of El Nino, with a particular focus on the following:

• Accelerating action on fertilisers, food and water security to mitigate the impact of shocks on existing food and water crises;
• Expanding early warning systems, anticipatory action and pre-arranged finance to reduce the immediate impact of extreme climate and weather, and scaling adaptive capacity to build longer term resilience and climate security to multiple and overlapping climate impacts;
• Ensuring the multilateral development banks’ crisis response toolkits are fit for purpose in an era of increasingly frequent climate shocks, and promoting existing efforts by the banks to strengthen and standardise these tools;
• Promoting ongoing work by the IMF and World Bank to strengthen the consideration of climate-related vulnerabilities and resilience-building investments within debt sustainability assessments;
• Calling on UN agencies to embed climate security considerations and conflict-sensitive approaches, leveraging the expertise of the UN Climate Security Mechanism (CSM);
• Strengthening recognition of nature and forests as critical infrastructure for resilience, security and growth, and exploring opportunities to integrate the protection and restoration of critical ecosystems into economic planning, risk management, and decision-making;
• And promoting ongoing work by the UN under the Inter-Governmental Process on Beyond GDP to build pragmatic economic growth models that integrate climate and nature ecosystem resilience and inform evolution of the post-2030 SDGs.

We look forward to reconvening on these issues at forthcoming fora including COP31, the World Bank and IMF annual meetings, and through 2027.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 22 September 2026.

Joint Statement for the Item 4 General Debate. Delivered by the UK’s Permanent Representative to the WTO and UN, Kumar Iyer.

Mr Vice-President,

I deliver this statement on behalf of a group of eleven countries that remain firmly committed to the two-State solution, in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the New York Declaration, as the only credible path to a just and lasting peace, security and dignity for both Israelis and Palestinians.

Israeli settlements are illegal under international law and constitute a serious obstacle to peace. Continued settlement expansion, the establishment of new outposts, land seizures, and rising settler violence further threaten the viability of a future Palestinian state.

With the rapidly deteriorating situation on the ground, we have taken new measures, supported European restrictions, or are actively considering measures to defend the viability of the two-state solution, including restrictions targeting settlement activity and those who support, facilitate or profit from it.

We call on Israel immediately to fully comply with its obligations under international law, halt settlement expansion, prevent and punish settler violence, and investigate allegations against Israeli forces. We also reaffirm our unwavering commitment to Israel’s security and our condemnation of terrorism, including the Hamas terror attacks of 7 October.

We will continue to work to uphold international law and protect the two-State solution.

This statement was on behalf of the UK, Canada, France, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 22 September 2026.

UK Statement for the Interactive Dialogue on Ukraine. Delivered at the 63rd Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Mr Vice-President,

The reporting before us is stark: Russian armed forces “systematically and repeatedly targeted energy facilities across Ukraine throughout the 2025-2026 winter,” leaving millions facing electricity outages and hundreds of thousands without heat during Ukraine’s coldest winter since 2010. These attacks undermine access to essential services, disrupting health care and water supply, while increasing humanitarian needs for millions.

July was the deadliest month for civilians in over four years, with 437 killed, including a record number of children. Russia’s attacks place civilians and humanitarian workers at unacceptable risk. The UN’s humanitarian chief described a “dystopian landscape” where technology able to protect civilians is instead used to hunt them with ever greater precision.

Russia struck Ukraine’s energy infrastructure over 130 times in August alone. We cannot allow this cycle of harm to continue and reiterate our call for Russia to accept the full and unconditional ceasefire offered by Ukraine, to enable negotiations towards a just and lasting peace.

Russia’s abuses extend beyond the battlefield: it is deceiving foreign nationals into fighting its illegal war, while militarising a generation of Ukrainian children in the Temporarily Occupied Territories.

Mr Møse, how can the Council strengthen accountability and help deter further attacks on essential infrastructure?

Thank you.