Tag: Foreign Office

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 24 March 2023.

UK Export Finance CEO will call on UK businesses to grasp opportunities to export to Albania.

• Tim Reid, CEO of UK Export Finance, the Albanian Prime Minister and Finance Minister will today outline their £4 billion ambition for a closer export relationship
• This could deliver a minimum of £800 million in value to businesses across the UK
• Tim Reid will issue a ‘call to action’ to British businesses to export to Albania using UKEF’s attractive terms to help raise debt finance
• The two countries will agree to be partners in economic development and sustainable projects in Albania and the wider Western Balkans

The Chief Executive of UK Export Finance (UKEF), Tim Reid, today meets with the Albanian Prime Minster, Edi Rama and Finance Minister, Delina Ibrahimaj, to cement their £4 billion ambition for a closer UK-Albania export relationship.  This £4 billion marks a doubling of the previously published market risk appetite for UKEF support for Albania and signals the huge opportunity available for UK exporters.

Total UK exports to Albania reached £144 million in the 12 months to September 2022, an increase of £97 million in current prices on the previous year. The visit will build on this growing trade relationship and result in an agreement to work more closely.

Tim Reid, CEO of UK Export Finance will say:

There is significant opportunity here for UK businesses.  The volume of trade with Albania is increasing dramatically, showing the huge appetite for British exports. With UKEF support more companies can reap the rewards of exporting.

We also welcome the recent launch of the British Chamber of Commerce in Albania. This new organisation will help connect British and Albanian businesses.

Our closer relationship with Albania will unlock a new phase of collaboration in sectors such as renewable energy, healthcare, and transport. Last year we celebrated our 100th year of trade relations, I’m looking forward to continuing our work with Albania and strengthening our great exporting relationship.

Deals made between the two countries would help grow the UK economy, support job creation and help deliver the government’s wider levelling up agenda. A £4 billion ambition would mean a minimum £800 million value to British businesses. This is because Albanian buyers would be required to source from the UK supply chain under the conditions of UKEF’s finance.

Delina Ibrahimaj, the Albanian Finance Minister, will say:

Albania has a pipeline of key infrastructure projects that need overseas investment. This agreement to work more closely with the UK should send a signal to British business that Albania has markets ready for your products and UKEF can support you in your export ambitions.

UKEF has an International Export Finance Executive based in the Western Balkans who works alongside other government teams in these countries as well as covering Central and Eastern Europe. The IEFE’s work closely with the overseas buyers to showcase the UK supply chain. They are on hand all over the world to discuss financing options available from UKEF to support the exports of UK goods and/or services.

An example of UKEF support in the Eastern European region includes a £360 million guaranteed loan for the construction of a 5G-ready motorway in Serbia. The UKEF support for this motorway project, announced in October 2021, is creating value worth approximately £125 million to the UK economy.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 24 March 2023.

Jill Morris, presented her credentials to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on 22 March 2023 and officially started her tour as British Ambassador to Turkey. She is the UK’s first female Ambassador to Turkiye.

British Ambassador Jill Morris CMG paid a visit to Anıtkabir on her first full day in office. She was accompanied by Embassy Staff.

Jill Morris laid a wreath at the mausoleum and observed a minute’s silence before signing the Anıtkabir Memorial Book. She wrote the following lines:

I am deeply honoured and proud to represent the UK in Turkiye, laying a wreath at the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and paying my heartfelt tribute and respect to the father of modern Turkiye. The UK and Turkiye have strong, deep rooted relations, including as allies in NATO. I look forward to strengthening further our partnership as we celebrate the centenary of the Turkish Republic in 2023.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 March 2023.

The UK is providing additional support to the government of Malawi, following devastating floods caused by Cyclone Freddy.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 23 March 2023.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 March 2023.

Statement by Ambassador James Kariuki at the UN Security Council briefing on Syria.

I thank Special Envoy Pedersen and Mr Talahma for their briefing and for the work of their teams

Thank you President, and thanks to the briefers for their updates and statements.

President, 12 years ago, the Syrian people peacefully took to the streets to demand freedom, political reform, and a government that respects and upholds human rights. The Assad regime met those demands with a brutal assault against them.

The earthquake last month added further tragedy to this crisis. We continue to direct our support to the Syrian people, providing $4.6 billion in humanitarian assistance since 2011. In the wake of the earthquake, we announced an additional $52 million across Syria and Turkiye to fund food, medical supplies and shelter. These resources must reach the over 4.1 million people in North-West Syria in the most effective and efficient means possible, including through predictable cross-border access. We welcome the UN’s efforts to deliver this and scale up.

But let us not make the mistake of thinking the conflict is over. Even since the earthquake hostilities have resumed, with numerous examples of Regime force attacks harming civilians. And the billion dollar narco-industry of Captagon stemming from Syria presents a new and destabilizing risk to the region.

So, as the Secretary-General said on the anniversary of the conflict, the support and solidarity provided in the aftermath of the earthquake must be channeled into renewed energy on the political track. We need to address the fundamental issues behind the conflict.

An inclusive and accountable end to the conflict is urgently needed. Security Council resolution 2254 is the framework to deliver the sustainable and lasting peace that the people of Syria deserve. We welcome all efforts to make progress on this track, including the important efforts of Special Envoy Pedersen and Member States in the region this week. I urge all colleagues in this chamber to play their role in delivering peace for the Syrian people.

President, next week, we will hear from the Secretary-General about the plight of the families who are still searching for their loved ones and his call to consider establishing a mechanism for the missing. This is an issue that affects all Syrians, on all sides of this conflict. We hope that the United Nations can come together to give them some answers.

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 March 2023.

Canadian Ambassador Jocelyn Kinnear gives a statement on behalf of 37 OSCE participating States on invoking the Moscow Mechanism for deteriorating human rights in Belarus.

I am delivering this statement on behalf of the following delegations: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

We have read with great concern the report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights presented on 22 March 2023, once again documenting the dire and continuous deterioration of the human rights situation in Belarus. The 1975 Helsinki Final Act recognizes respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms as one of its ten guiding principles, integrating human rights in a regional security framework and placing their protection on the same par as politico-military and economic issues.  As such, the protection and promotion of human rights in Belarus continues to be of our direct and legitimate concern as a vital basis for the overall security in the OSCE region.

The report of the Moscow Mechanism Mission released on 5 November 2020 concluded that there were systematic human rights violations and abuses committed with impunity and on a massive scale by Belarusian authorities before, during and following the fraudulent 9 August 2020 presidential election. The Moscow Mechanism report made a number of recommendations, including the calling of new, genuine presidential elections based on international standards, putting an end to violence against the people of Belarus, ensuring accountability for victims of abuses, the release of those unjustly detained, engagement and dialogue with representatives of political opposition and civil society, and establishing an OSCE/ODIHR observation mission.

In the two years that have passed since the publication of that report, the Belarusian authorities have failed to address the serious allegations of violations and abuses identified in it and have wholly disregarded its recommendations. Moreover, the Belarusian authorities have taken further actions that both deepen and expand our concerns about Belarus’ fulfilment of OSCE human dimension commitments, including through the continued enabling of the Russian Federation’s war of aggression against Ukraine.

We have repeatedly raised our concerns in the Permanent Council and other OSCE fora, including under the OSCE Vienna Mechanism, but the Belarusian Delegation’s replies have continuously ignored our legitimate concerns. These include, but are not limited to:

• detention of nearly 1,500 political prisoners, with numbers continuing to rise;
• intimidation, harassment, arbitrary or unlawful arrest, detention, and imprisonment of human rights defenders, members of the political opposition, journalists and other media actors, lawyers, labour activists, persons belonging to national minorities, and civil society groups;
• labelling of thousands of citizens and organisations as extremist and the shutdown of nearly all independent non-governmental organisations;
• insufficient access to legal and medical assistance for those arrested and/or detained;
• lack of due process and respect for the right to a fair trial as provided for under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. This includes retroactive application of law, and instituting special criminal proceedings (in absentia) against persons who are outside Belarus;
• torture, and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment of persons in custody, including sexual and gender-based violence;
• excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, including those protesting Belarus’s support for Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine;
• eradication of independent labour unions;
• efforts to silence independent media and enact severe restrictions on access to information, including through internet surveillance, and censorship;
• systematically tightened legislation limiting political freedoms and imposition of sentences which contravene rule of law standards and are intended to deter and punish dissent;
• extension of the death penalty to vaguely defined “attempts to carry out acts of terrorism and murders of government officials or public figures”; and
• impunity for the human rights violations and abuses described above.

The above policies and actions of the Belarusian authorities continue to give rise to a particularly serious threat to the fulfilment of OSCE human dimension commitments, including those on participating States meeting their obligations under international law.  To underscore our concerns about the continued deterioration of the internal human rights situation in Belarus and to explore more recent development of serious abuses linked to Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine, we invoke paragraph 12 of the 1991 Document of the Moscow meeting of the Conference on the Human Dimension of the (then) CSCE in order to establish a fact-finding mission of experts to examine the human dimension issues identified above, with a particular emphasis on developments since the conclusion of the 5 November 2020 Moscow Mechanism report, especially the circumstances surrounding the growing number of persons detained for politically motivated reasons, as well as recent legislative amendments to inter alia the Criminal Code and the Law on Countering Extremism.

With a view to contributing to current and any future efforts to promote accountability for human rights violations in Belarus, including by civil society and the United Nations, we encourage the mission of experts to establish the facts and report on them, and to advise the Republic of Belarus, the OSCE, and the international community, on possible solutions to the issues raised.

We remind Belarusian authorities that, in accordance with paragraph 10 of the Moscow Document, an expert mission, one member of which may be chosen by the Republic of Belarus, should be able to give an objective and unbiased report and recommendations on these issues.

We urge the Belarusian authorities to cooperate fully and facilitate the work of the mission of experts, as per paragraph 6 of the OSCE’s Moscow Document.

Thank you, Mr Chairman.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 March 2023.

Ambassador Bush says that the international community knows the truth behind Putin’s actions in Mariupol, and throughout Ukraine.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 March 2023.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly hosts Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu in London for signing of Strategic Partnership and opening of bilateral forum.

• Foreign Secretary emphasises ongoing strength of UK-Romania relationship at joint forum, and signs renewed Strategic Partnership with Romanian counterpart
• Support for Ukraine and the broader Black Sea community was at the top of the agenda, as well as the nations’ collective defence through NATO
• Joint forum to take place annually going forward, to maintain strong partnership

The UK will bolster its strong partnership with Romania today (Thursday 23 March), with the Foreign Secretary set to emphasise the particular importance of standing shoulder to shoulder with Romanian partners in the face of Russia’s aggression in neighbouring Ukraine.

Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu is in London this week to meet the Foreign Secretary and sign a renewed strategic partnership to strengthen and maintain the UK and Romania’s deep historical connections and economic ties, from our strong trading relationship to shared objectives through NATO.

The strategic partnership was first established in 2003, setting out our shared commitment to grow relations between the two countries, and the Foreign Secretary will recognise this week that the strengthening of the UK and Romania’s relationship is of significant importance in the context of the invasion of Ukraine, and the security challenges faced in Europe in 2023.

The two Ministers will also open a joint bilateral forum at the Foreign Office in London, bringing together government and business representatives, parliamentarians, academics and civil society to discuss the future of UK-Romania cooperation, covering a range of fields from economic, trade and energy cooperation, to civil society and education.

The forum presents an opportunity for the UK to emphasise its unwavering support for Romania and the Black Sea region, which forms a central bulwark in the UK’s defence system in the region. It comes after the government announced new resilience funding in Moldova this month, underlining the UK’s support for territorial integrity as part of work with Russia’s neighbours, to help address the threat on their doorstep.

Opening the forum today, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly is expected to say:

As discussions with my friend Bogdan Aurescu demonstrate, our countries could not be closer on the biggest issues affecting our nations, the whole of Europe, and indeed the whole world.

We now have 1.2 million people who are able to call themselves both Romanian and British – some of which are here today – up and down the UK. It is absolutely right that in 2023, we refresh our ambition and confirm our commitment to work closely together in foreign policy, defence, education, science, crime-fighting, stopping human trafficking, trade and investment.

The Foreign Secretary and Minister Aurescu will commit to collective defence through NATO, and to working together to strengthen the transatlantic relationship, with a particular view to countering Russia’s aggressive action in the Black Sea region.

Romania holds the longest border with Ukraine in all of NATO, and has consequently provided support to nearly 4 million Ukrainian refugees, with more than 100,000 making the country their temporary home. The British Embassy in Bucharest has also offered support in education, allowing Ukrainian teachers to continue to teach their curriculum in Romania. The Foreign Secretary will pay tribute to the generous support provided by Romania since the invasion.

Today’s session will also see the two nations pledge to work together to strengthen energy security and tackle climate change, expand connections between people and businesses, and to promote growth in both countries following the pandemic.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 22 March 2023.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly held a meeting with His Excellency Ayman Safadi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Jordan, in London.

The Foreign Secretary hosted His Excellency Ayman Safadi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, in London on 22 March.

The Ministers affirmed their commitment to maintaining the strong strategic partnership between the UK and Jordan, based on the rich and positive shared history between our two countries and peoples. The Foreign Secretary highlighted the UK’s decision this month to include Jordan as an early participant in our Electronic Travel Authorisation scheme as a reflection of our close ties. The scheme will bring many benefits in facilitating business and tourism travel for Jordanian visitors to the UK.

The Foreign Secretary praised Jordan’s role, under the leadership of His Majesty King Abdullah II, as a force for stability in the Middle East and a generous host of refugees. The UK is continuing to provide humanitarian and development assistance to Jordan. The Foreign Secretary expressed his grave concern about the recent increase in violence in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and affirmed the UK’s active support for steps to de-escalate tensions, including the recent meetings of the parties hosted by Jordan in Aqaba and Egypt in Sharm El-Sheikh. The UK remains committed to a two-state solution to the conflict.

The Ministers discussed the situation in Syria following the tragic earthquake of 6 February. The Foreign Secretary underlined the importance of unimpeded humanitarian access so that aid reaches populations in need in Syria, including through continued cross-border access to northern Syria.  He affirmed the UK’s support for a political settlement in Syria in line with Security Council Resolution 2254.

The Foreign Secretary emphasised the UK’s commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and underlined the need for Russia to immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all its forces from Ukraine, as set out in UN General Assembly resolutions that have received overwhelming international support.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 22 March 2023.

UK Statement under Item 4 General Debate delivered by UK Human Rights Ambassador Rita French.