Tag: Foreign Office

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 8 March 2025.

Foreign ministers of France, Germany, Italy and the UK gave a joint statement welcoming the Arab initiative of a Recovery and Reconstruction Plan for Gaza.

Joint statement:

We, the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom welcome the Arab initiative of a Recovery and Reconstruction Plan for Gaza. The plan shows a realistic path to the reconstruction of Gaza and promises – if implemented – swift and sustainable improvement of the catastrophic living conditions for the Palestinians living in Gaza. Recovery and reconstruction efforts must be based upon a solid political and security framework acceptable to both Israelis and Palestinians, which provides long term peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians alike. We are clear that Hamas must neither govern Gaza nor be a threat to Israel any more. We explicitly support the central role for the Palestinian Authority and the implementation of its reform agenda.

We commend the serious efforts of all involved stakeholders and appreciate the important signal the Arab states have sent by jointly developing this recovery and reconstruction plan. We are committed to working with the Arab initiative, the Palestinians and Israel to address those issues together, including security and governance. We urge all parties to build on the plan’s merits as a starting point.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 March 2025.

Statement by Fergus Eckersley, UK Minister Counsellor, at the UN Security Council meeting on Syria.

The last time this Council met to discuss chemical weapons in Syria, Bashar al-Assad was still in power.

Two days later, he fled and his brutal regime was overthrown.

The fall of Assad marks a new chapter for Syria and presents a golden opportunity to destroy his remaining chemical weapons programme, verified by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

However, the situation in Syria is fragile and we must make sure we seize this window of opportunity to remove the threat posed by these weapons once and for all.

The UK is concerned about recent clashes in Syria, which must not be allowed to escalate into wider violence. We urge all parties to refrain from further violence and exercise restraint at this critical time.

The OPCW Director-General’s visit to Damascus on 8 February was an important step forward.

And we are greatly encouraged by the commitments already made by the Syrian interim authorities to fully cooperate with the OPCW and to secure chemical weapons sites.

The attendance of Syria’s interim Foreign Minister, at the OPCW’s Executive Council this week was a very significant moment.

We welcome his renewed commitments on chemical weapons, including to “put an end to this painful legacy and ensure Syria becomes a nation aligned with international norms.”

The next step is to support Syria to meet its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention, including to declare and destroy remaining chemical weapons stockpiles working with the OPCW.

The OPCW Director-General set out the scale of the challenge ahead to the OPCW’s Executive Council this week.

And this Council has an important role to play in supporting the OPCW’s work.

First, we underscore the importance of implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention alongside the full implementation of Security Council Resolution 2118.

Second, the international community must provide the financial and technical assistance to the OPCW that it needs.

The UK has committed more than $1m to the OPCW Syria Missions since the fall of Assad to support their immediate work.

Finally, as Syria’s interim authorities seek to bring stability to the country and address security threats, it is vital that Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity are respected.

This is why we urge Israel to de-escalate their actions in Syria.

Such military action risks destabilising an already fragile security situation.

We call on all parties to provide the safe conditions for the OPCW to conduct its work.

Madam President, with political will from the new authorities in Syria and this Council, there is an opportunity to deal with this issue once and for all, and to finally achieve the total elimination of chemical weapons in Syria.

We must take that opportunity.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2025.

The UK underlines concerns at the adoption of laws by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska in violation of the Dayton Agreements, and reaffirms unequivocal commitment to the territorial integrity of BiH.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

The United Kingdom remains concerned at the rise of dangerous ethno-nationalist politics which seek to undermine Bosnia and Herzegovina’s statehood.

The people of BiH need their political leaders to focus on passing reforms, rather than exacerbating tensions and engaging in dangerous, secessionist moves.

We note and share the deep concerns of ODIHR and RFoM at the adoption by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska of laws in violation of the Dayton Agreements. These unconstitutional actions disrupt institutions such as the BiH Court from exercising their legal authority.

The UK continues to urge all actors to fully adhere to Dayton, and respect the state institutions of BiH.  We reaffirm our unequivocal commitment to the territorial integrity of BiH and support for a single, sovereign state comprising two entities, in which all its peoples and citizens are equal.

Republika Srpska President Dodik’s actions this week do not serve the people of BiH. They are an attempt by Dodik to undermine and distract from the decision of an independent court.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2025.

Statement by Ambassador Barbara Woodward, UK Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN General Assembly meeting on the use of the veto.

Last week, this Assembly marked three years since Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, in flagrant violation of the UN Charter.

This Assembly voted decisively in support of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and of the UN Charter, based on the facts – this was an invasion of a sovereign country by its neighbour.

It was a war of choice.

As my Prime Minister has made clear, the UK continues to support peace in Ukraine.

Our approach is based on four principles.

First, to support Ukraine’s legitimate right to self-defence under Article 51 of the UN Charter.

Second, any lasting peace must guarantee the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and Ukraine must be at the negotiating table.

Third, and fourth, when a peace deal is reached, as a European neighbour, we will continue to support Ukraine’s defence and deterrence capability.

And, we are ready to develop a coalition of the willing to defend a peace deal in Ukraine.

For peace to be sustainable, it must be strong and just and deter further Russian aggression against its neighbours.

This is why the UK, along with other Security Council Members, proposed amendments that would bring the Security Council resolution in line with the resolutions of the General Assembly, which had been adopted just hours beforehand.

These amendments sought to acknowledge Russia as the perpetrator of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine;

To reaffirm our commitment to the territorial integrity of Ukraine;

And to ensure that peace in Ukraine would be in line with the UN Charter.

In order to stop us, Russia exercised its veto.

In doing so, it flouted the voice of the General Assembly.

It vetoed respect for the UN Charter and for the sovereignty of a neighbour.

And all the while, Russia has continued its campaign of aggression against Ukraine, including with this week’s drone attacks on civilian buildings in Kharkiv.

We should judge Putin by his actions. And these are not the actions of a peacemaker.

As we sit here today, discussing Russia’s use of the veto on amendments regarding its own violations of the UN Charter, let us remember one thing:

If Putin wanted peace, he could have it tomorrow.

All Russia need do is cease its aggression and withdraw its forces from all of Ukraine.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2025.

The UK has lifted asset freezes on 24 Syrian entities, underscoring our commitment to help Syrians rebuild their country and economy.

An FCDO spokesperson said:

“We are lifting asset freezes on 24 Syrian entities that were previously used by the Assad regime to fund the oppression of the Syrian people, including the Central Bank of Syria, Syrian Arab Airlines, and energy companies.

“At the same time, sanctions on members of the Assad regime and those involved in the illicit trade in captagon remain in place.

“This approach underscores our commitment to help the people of Syria rebuild their country and economy, including through support for a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political transition process. We will continue to judge Syria’s interim authorities by their actions, not their words.”

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2025.

Statement by Ambassador James Kariuki, UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN Security Council meeting on Yemen.

First, the UK welcomes the Council’s strong and united condemnation of the ongoing detentions by the Houthis and the tragic death of a World Food Programme member of staff in Houthi captivity.

Continued Council unity sends a clear and unequivocal message to the Houthis that they must unconditionally and immediately release those detained.

We fully support the UN’s decision to pause humanitarian operations in Saada.

This pause is a direct consequence of the Houthi threat undermining the security and safety of aid workers.

Miss Ali and this morning’s press stakeout have again highlighted how this already dire humanitarian situation is exacerbated by climate change, intensifying existing issues such as water and food security.

Second, the Yemen Coast Guard’s announcement of their interdiction of a dhow containing advanced weapon components, reportedly destined for Hodeida port, is more evidence of a  clear violation of the arms embargo contained in UNSC Resolution 2216.

We reiterate our call for all UN Member States to ensure full compliance with the arms embargo. In particular, we call for the Iranian Government to cease its destabilising activity in the region.

UNVIM remains critical to preventing the smuggling of illicit arms.

The UK calls on the international community to provide unwavering support to UNVIM and to ensure it has the funding necessary to fulfil its obligations.

We also continue to support Yemen’s Coast Guard as it looks to strengthen its capacities to protect Yemen’s maritime borders.

In partnership with the Government of Yemen, and international partners, we look forward to the launch of the Yemen Maritime Security Partnership later this year.

Finally, President, the UK remains committed to achieving lasting peace in Yemen and the broader region.

Ultimately, long-term stability and security in Yemen can only be achieved through a UN-led inclusive political settlement.

We will continue to give our full support of Special Envoy Grundberg in this effort.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2025.

UK Ambassador Corinne Kitsell’s statement on behalf of Australia, the UK and the US to the International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors meeting on IAEA safeguards and AUKUS.

Chair,

I take the floor on behalf of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States to respond to disinformation about Australia’s acquisition of a naval nuclear propulsion capability through the AUKUS partnership. We are once again compelled to invoke our Right of Reply to address remarks that purposefully mischaracterise AUKUS and attempt to undermine the independence, integrity, and authority of the IAEA.

I reiterate that this item has not been adopted as a standing agenda item by this Board and has never enjoyed consensus support, despite one member state’s introduction every Board. This repeated attempt to add an agenda item distracts from other pressing concerns requiring the Board’s attention and falsely implies an active compliance problem where none exists. AUKUS partners will provide an update on Australia’s acquisition of conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines under ‘Any Other Business’, consistent with our practice of providing updates to every regular meeting of the Board since 2021.

Director General Grossi has repeatedly expressed his satisfaction with AUKUS partners’ engagement and transparency and has upheld his commitment to update the Board on naval nuclear propulsion, including through his report published last November. Ever since the initial announcement of the partnership, the AUKUS partners have continued to engage consistently, openly, and transparently with Member States and the Secretariat on genuine questions.

Chair,

Under this item, the Board has repeatedly heard unsubstantiated claims that ignore or misrepresent the information we have provided in good faith, and assertions that disregard the statements made by the Director General. I would like to remind the Board that:

With regards to an intergovernmental dialogue, the IAEA has the clear authority under its Statute, and extensive precedent, to negotiate directly and in-confidence with individual Member States on the establishment and application of safeguards and verification arrangements. Interference would politicise the IAEA’s independence, its mandate and technical authority, and establish a deeply harmful precedent.

I also want to underline that the transfer of high enriched uranium from a nuclear-weapon State to a non-nuclear-weapon State does not run counter to the NPT or its spirit. The transfer of nuclear material at any enrichment level among States Parties is not prohibited by the NPT, provided the transfer is carried out in a manner consistent with any relevant safeguards obligations. Australia’s conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine program will be subject to a robust package of verification measures, consistent with its longstanding non-proliferation obligations.

Naval nuclear propulsion was indeed foreseen by the drafters of the NPT. Article 14 of the IAEA’s model Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement – on which Australia’s CSA is based – is the specific provision to support the right of states to use nuclear material in a non-proscribed military activity, including for naval nuclear propulsion, within the legal framework for safeguards implementation.

As we have regularly stated, under Australia’s Article 14 arrangement, the IAEA will maintain oversight of nuclear material and meet its technical safeguards objectives throughout the submarines’ lifecycle. Once the Article 14 arrangement is agreed between Australia and the IAEA Secretariat, the Director General will transmit it to the Board for ‘appropriate action’. To suggest that the Board will somehow be bypassed is false.

With regards to the AUKUS Naval Nuclear Propulsion Agreement, I want to underline that it reaffirms, and is consistent with, the parties’ existing non-proliferation obligations, including under the NPT. The Agreement obliges the UK and US to ensure that Australia can provide the IAEA with other information and access necessary to fulfil Australia’s obligations under its safeguards agreements with the IAEA and the future Article 14 arrangement.

Chair,

Our three countries – along with the majority of the Board – continue to oppose any proposal for this item to be a standing agenda item or any efforts that undermine and politicise the technical mandate of the IAEA. We appreciate that colleagues continue to reject deliberate attempts to undermine the Agency’s independence and integrity.

We will continue to engage in good faith with Member States on genuine questions. Consistent with our approach to maintaining open and transparent engagement, we will provide an update to the Board under ‘Any Other Business’ and welcome the Director General’s continued commitment to provide updates on naval nuclear propulsion, as and when he deems appropriate.

Thank you, Chair.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2025.

Ambassador Neil Holland outlines that progress towards a prosperous world free from poverty cannot be achieved without accelerating gender equality and the empowerment of all girls and women.

Thank you, Mr Chair.

As the United Kingdom prepares to mark International Women’s Day on 8 March, the day serves as an important reminder that gender equality benefits everyone. Progress towards a prosperous world free from poverty cannot be achieved without accelerating gender equality and the empowerment of all girls and women.

The current global trajectory is deeply concerning. Gender equality is under threat, and the world is off track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 5 on Gender Equality by 2030. The power of online disinformation, harm and abuse, and the harnessing of violent misogynistic narratives by influential actors and groups globally is driving new and acute threats to gender equality. Where there have been hard-won legislative safeguards protecting women’s control over their health and bodies, we are seeing these being undermined and removed. Maternal mortality rates are stagnating and, in some cases, increasing. Human rights defenders and those who have dedicated their lives to advancing gender equality face violence and intimidation. In the OSCE region, there has been horrific evidence of conflict-related sexual violence perpetrated through Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.

Growing levels of conflict and crisis disproportionately affect women and girls. They bear the brunt of conflict; humanitarian disaster; environmental degradation and food insecurity. The rights, freedoms, and wellbeing of women and girls in conflict and under repressive regimes are acutely constrained, driving intergenerational inequality and suffering.

In this context, it is more important than ever that we stand up for gender equality. Accelerated progress on gender equality will deliver global economic growth, contribute to a safer and more secure world, and contribute to solving the energy and climate crises.

The theme of International Women’s Day in 2025 is “Accelerate Action”. This focuses on the importance of taking swift and decisive steps to achieve gender equality. According to data from the World Economic Forum, at the current rate of progress it will take until the year 2158 – roughly five generations from now – to reach full gender parity. There is an urgent need to increase momentum in addressing the systemic barriers and biases that women face, both in personal and professional spheres.

The UK is committed to improving the outlook for women and girls globally, including through large-scale programmes to pioneer effective approaches to ending Gender Based Violence, and through supporting women’s rights activists’ advocacy in key decision-making fora. The UK particularly champions the voices and leadership of women and girls in Ukraine, recognising the critical contribution women are making on the frontline and in communities affected by Russia’s illegal invasion.

Mr 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. It is vital that we follow through on our commitments to ensure the equal rights of all women and girls.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2025.

Ambassador Holland dismisses Russian disinformation and underlines the UK’s support to Ukraine in its aim to ensure Russia cannot attack it again.

Thank you, Mister Chair.  It will not surprise you or anyone else here to hear from me today a restatement of UK commitment to Ukraine. There has been a lot of nonsense spoken in this room about the UK’s position over recent weeks. The actions taken by the UK Prime Minister over the last week, including at the London Summit, make very clear how wrong any suggestion that the UK wants to prolong the war in Ukraine actually is.

But the UK believes that the legal and political commitments that we signed up to after the Second World War mean something. These commitments, including the UN Charter, the Helsinki Final Act and the Charter of Paris, form a framework for our stability. They clearly state how we should expect countries to behave towards each other and to our citizens. Fundamentals such as sovereignty, territorial integrity and the right to choose alliances are not negotiable – or suspendible when inconvenient. For 80 years, when we have lived up to them, they have kept us all safe from unintended conflict in Europe, even during the Cold War.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is therefore not just an unacceptable act of aggression, wrong in absolute terms and brutal and indiscriminate in the way it has been conducted. Although that is all true.  It is also a dangerous repudiation of the framework of principles and commitments that keep us safe. And to allow such aggression to be rewarded is a terrible example to set.  It would encourage more of the same behaviour, in this part of the world and elsewhere.

We have heard a lot about what the Russian state wants over the last few weeks.  But for peace, when it comes, to be lasting, Ukraine needs to be confident that the Russian aggression cannot happen again.  The UK does not like war.  We do not like our friends being at war.  We do not seek to prolong war. But we do support Ukraine in its aim to ensure Russia cannot attack it again and will continue to support Ukraine until it believes the peace on offer is one which guarantees its security in a sustainable way.  That means they must be able to negotiate from a position of strength. This has always been the UK’s position, before and during this unnecessary war. Ukraine is a sovereign country that can decide its own future without interference from other countries.

Mister Chair, as ever Russia is producing a blizzard of disinformation to distract us from the facts. The facts are that Russia invaded Ukraine without provocation, that tens of thousands of soldiers on both sides have died unnecessarily and that this could stop tomorrow if Russia made the right choices and lived up to its commitments.

Mister Chair, the UK’s position is simple to understand. Aggression should not be rewarded.  The principles we have all signed up should be protected. A peace should be sustainable. And Ukraine should be free to determine its own future.  That is a strategic vision worth holding out for.

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 March 2025.

UK Statement at the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders. Delivered at the 58th Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Thank you Mr President.

The United Kingdom welcomes the Special Rapporteur’s report and her ongoing work on what is a high priority mandate for the UK. We thank her for drawing attention to the work of human rights defenders in isolated, remote and rural contexts.

We recognise the additional risks that these brave defenders face and deplore the exploitation of their geographical location to threaten and attack them.

Human rights defenders make crucial contributions to human rights, sustainable development and the rule of law. We call on all States to provide a safe, accessible and supportive environment for individuals and organisations carrying out this work.

At a practical level the UK continues to support human rights defenders and their work through our diplomatic network who regularly meet with them. We monitor cases and raise issues both directly with governments, as well as through multilateral organisations and bodies.

Special Rapporteur,

We would like to ask what further practical steps can States take to develop protection mechanisms for human rights defenders working in isolated, remote and rural contexts?