Tag: Foreign Office

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2024.

Statement by Jess Jambert-Gray, Deputy Political Coordinator, at the UN Security Council meeting on Afghanistan.

First and foremost, the UK unequivocally condemns the so-called “vice and virtue” law issued by the Taliban. As my Foreign Secretary said, this law marks another tragic setback for the country, and for its people.

The international community must speak in one voice in our total opposition to the Taliban’s continued assault on human rights. We call on the Taliban to immediately reverse these abhorrent policies and ensure the fundamental freedoms of all Afghans.

The UK is unwavering in our support to Afghan women, and to providing platforms for their voices to be heard. We are pleased to co-host a UN General Assembly side event later today that will shine a spotlight on Afghan women and girls in the fight against food insecurity.

Second, we call on the UN to drive forward progress on Security Council Resolution 2721. This includes the urgent appointment of a Special Envoy.

But let us be clear, the Taliban cannot expect the international community to move forward on the UN process without first meeting their international obligations on the fundamental freedoms of women and girls, political inclusion, and counter terrorism.

Finally, the international community needs to step up the humanitarian response in Afghanistan, which remains only 30% funded.

As the latest Secretary General report set out, 23.7 million people will require humanitarian assistance in 2024. 12.4 million people are acutely food insecure and 6.6 million people remain internally displaced. The recent Taliban restrictions will only make this appalling situation worse for Afghanistan’s most marginalised and most vulnerable.

Since 2021, the UK has provided over $800 million to address the humanitarian crisis. We urge others to take similar steps to alleviate the suffering of Afghan people.

We remain committed to working constructively with parties inside and outside of Afghanistan for an Afghanistan at peace with itself, its neighbours, and the international community.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2024.

UK military advisor, Nicholas Aucott, says Russia’s illegal war suffers further setbacks as casualties mount, and it loses its first submarine in combat since the second world war.

Thank you, Mr Chair. As we meet for the first regular session of this trimester, I want to reflect on the current military situation regarding Russia’s illegal war of aggression in Ukraine. It is now 2 years and 212 days since Russia conducted its full-scale invasion, a military action which Russia envisaged would be over in a matter of days. In that context, the current predicament can be construed as nothing less than a military disaster for the Kremlin.

Since we last convened in a regular FSC session, Ukraine now controls up to 900 square kilometres of Russian territory in the Kursk Oblast. Ukraine has a clear right of self-defence against Russia’s illegal, unprovoked and barbaric invasion, and its actions are demonstrative of the ability of Ukraine’s armed forces to achieve strategic surprise and expose Russian weaknesses.

At the military level, Ukraine’s effective use of manoeuvre warfare stands in stark contrast to Russia’s ‘meat grinder’ tactics. Russian casualties averaged 1187 a day in August. Contrast this to the daily rate of 544 Russian casualties in August last year, and 236 for the same month in 2022 and it paints a bleak picture for Russia’s military. Even more starkly, Russia has now lost more than 610,000 casualties (killed and wounded) in the prosecution of its illegal campaign.

In the maritime domain, the campaign is faring little better for Russia. Despite having a considerably smaller maritime component, Ukraine has pushed much of the Russian navy eastwards from Crimea. Ukraine has damaged or destroyed a quarter of the Russian black sea fleet. This includes the destruction of the ‘Rostov-on-Don’, a $300M Russian submarine which was lost to Ukrainian action on 3 August, marking the first combat loss of a Russian submarine since the second world war. As in the land domain, this loss is a stunning Russian military failure.

Russia’s illegal campaign was instigated without justification. This forum met repeatedly, prior to the full-scale invasion, in an effort to avert this deliberate act of aggression. As expected, the consequences of these actions have been a tragedy, but perhaps less expected, for none more so than Russia itself.

Russia’s response so far has been to double down. It has turned to Iran and North Korea for the provision of weaponry as its own economy adopts a war footing, increasingly twisting it out of shape. Russia’s continued negotiation of deals for significant quantities of weapons from DPRK violates many UN Security Council resolutions, including ones that Russia itself voted for. Russia has also now procured ballistic missiles from Iran for the first time, representing a significant escalation that will only increase the suffering of Ukrainian civilians. Russia continues to issue threats, constructing a false narrative against NATO and the EU to suggest they are in some way responsible for Russia’s own illegal choices. Nobody compelled Russia to start this war and most participating states in this forum went to extraordinary efforts to try and prevent such a catastrophic course of action.

If Russia wants peace, there is a simple way to end this ongoing pattern of destruction. Russia must cease hostilities in Ukraine and remove its forces from Ukraine’s internationally recognised territory. The United Kingdom, alongside its partners, will continue in its enduring support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2024.

Mr Andrew Murdoch has been appointed Governor of Bermuda in succession to Ms Rena Lalgie. Mr Murdoch will take up his appointment during January 2025.

Curriculum vitae

Full name: Andrew Murdoch

2016 to Present	FCDO, Legal Director and Director of Ocean Policy
2015 to 2016	FCO, Legal Director, International Institutions and Security Policy, Legal Directorate
2011 to 2014	FCO, Senior Assistant Legal Adviser, International Institutions and Security Policy, Legal Directorate
2009 to 2011	Royal Navy, Commander, Head of Operations, Directorate of Naval Legal Services
2008 to 2009	Royal Navy, Commander, Coalition Maritime Force Legal Adviser, Bahrain
2006 to 2008	Royal Navy, Lieutenant Commander/Commander, Deputy and then Fleet Legal Adviser
2004 to 2005	Royal Navy, Lieutenant Commander, Higher Authority Legal Adviser
2003 to 2004	Royal Navy, Lieutenant Commander, Logistics Officer HMS YORK
2001 to 2002	Royal Navy, Lieutenant, Assistant Chief Naval Judge Advocate
1998 to 2001	Royal Navy, Lieutenant, Legal Training as Barrister
1990 to 1998	Royal Navy, Midshipman to Lieutenant, Deputy Logistics Officer HMS CAMPBELTOWN and naval career prior to legal training

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 18 September 2024.

• the Foreign Secretary will visit Norwegian Joint Headquarters with Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide to discuss deepening UK-Norway security collaboration
• the ministers will reinforce both countries’ unwavering commitment to Ukraine and tackling threats from Russia including their Shadow Fleet
• they will discuss the UK and Norway’s joint work in the High North to detect, deter and contain threats and defend NATO’s northern flank

Foreign Secretary David Lammy will commit to strengthening UK-Norway defence and security cooperation on a visit to Norwegian Joint Headquarters with Foreign Minister Barth Eide today [18 September].

During the Foreign Secretary’s visit, he will reaffirm both countries’ commitment to Ukraine, particularly through military support to boost their defence capabilities. They will also discuss efforts to tackle Russia’s shadow fleet, cutting the flow of illicit funds to Putin’s war chest following on from UK sanctions.

Norway and the UK have a long history of defence and security collaboration especially in the High North. Norway has hosted British Armed Forces’ Arctic training for over 50 years, and over 4,000 UK troops will visit Norway in the next 6 months for winter training and military exercises.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said:

With the return of war to the European continent, the UK’s relationship with Norway, as a key ally in the defence of NATO’s northern flank, has never been more important.

We are both unwavering in our support to Ukraine, and together we are training and supporting the Ukrainian armed forces including boosting the country’s air defence and maritime capabilities.

Norway acts as our eyes and ears in the High North; our joint work at the Norwegian military headquarters underlines the importance of our work to bolster Europe’s defences.

Euro-Atlantic security is this government’s foreign and defence priority.

In the face of Russia’s sustained malign influence campaigns, and its recent baseless expulsion of British diplomats, the UK and Norway will agree to enhance intelligence-sharing and cooperation to counter Russian disinformation networks in Europe and beyond.

The Foreign Secretary will welcome Norway’s navy patrols of the waters between the UK and the Russian Northern Fleet, detecting, deterring and managing increasingly sophisticated subsea threats to energy, security and critical national infrastructure.

Norway is an important ally on conflict prevention and peacebuilding, especially when it comes to ongoing conflict in Gaza. The UK and Norway are also focused on ensuring joint ambition on development truly delivers for global partners.

Norway is also a key trading partner in supplying the UK with the energy it needs to power growth. That is why the UK and Norwegian Prime Ministers agreed in July to begin work on a new Norwegian-UK partnership on security and the energy transition.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 17 September 2024.

UK Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Catherine West, begins her first visit to southeast Asia in Singapore.

• Deepening economic ties and climate collaboration focus on UK Indo-Pacific Minister’s first Southeast Asia visit
• Minister West will set out the new UK government’s approach to foreign policy, growth and climate at the Milken Institute Asia Summit 2024 with government and business leaders
• Speaking to a meeting of Singapore-based semiconductor firms, the Minister will highlight the link between resilient supply chains and economic growth

Securing sustainable economic growth, resilient supply chains and climate action are at the forefront as UK Minister for the Indo-Pacific Catherine West begins her first visit to southeast Asia today (17 September).

In Singapore, Minister West will join government and industry leaders from across the region at influential policy forum the Milken Institute Asia Summit, where she will set out the new UK government’s ambition to work with partners in Southeast Asia and the Indo-Pacific to address global challenges and support economic growth. This includes through the UK-Singapore Strategic Partnership, launched in September 2023, which is deepening cooperation on trade and investment, defence and security and science and tech.

Speaking ahead of the visit, Minister West said:

My message to Singapore and partners in the Indo-Pacific is this: the UK is open for business. We know that our relationships in this region are essential to our future prosperity.

Secure economic growth relies on us working with partners to tackle the greatest challenges of this century, including the climate crisis and other threats to global security – so that is exactly what this government will do.

Aligning with Foreign Secretary David Lammy’s pledge to build a Global Clean Power Alliance to tackle the pressing climate crisis, the Minister will visit British-built Marina Barrage, an example of UK-supported infrastructure mitigating the impact of climate change. Attending the Singapore Semiconductor Industry Association Summit, she will set out the government’s ambition to increase UK-Singapore cooperation on the research and development of critical tech including AI and quantum computing.

Following her visit to Singapore, Minister West will travel to Thailand on 19-20 September for discussions with the new Thai government.

Notes to editors

• The Marina Barrage sits across the Marina Channel and was used to create Singapore’s 15th freshwater reservoir. The barrage was designed by UK civil engineering firm Binnies and the reservoir by British engineers Mott MacDonald.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 17 September 2024.

The UK government today has announced up to £1.9 million in funding to strengthen science, technology and innovation in Ghana and Nigeria through its West Africa Research and Innovation Hub.

The Sankore call for proposals will support the UK government’s partnership with governments in Ghana and Nigeria on Science, Technology and Innovation, facilitate commercialisation of innovative solutions, improve innovation policy and enhance government digital service delivery.

Named after a medieval centre of learning in West Africa, Sankore will support the implementation of the UK-Ghana Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy. It will promote collaborative work between universities, research centres and the private sector, and help turn new ideas into useful products for industry and support projects that fit with Ghana’s tech goals.

Launching a call for proposals at a press conference in Accra, Lord Collins, UK Minister for Africa, said:

This initiative is all about how we can work together to strengthen the global technology sector, creating opportunities for rapidly growing economies with lots of potential to compete on the world stage. The Sankore grant fosters partnerships at its heart, with a strong message that we go far when we go together.

Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Hon. Ophelia Mensah Hayford said:

Sankore will serve as a financing vehicle to catalyse the implementation of the UK-Ghana ST&I Strategy. This initiative is one of many initiatives the Ministry with the support of the UK Government intends to bridge the funding gap for Ghana’s Technological Innovation. We are happy to partner key actors in the innovation ecosystem to drive the economic transformation in Ghana through ST&I.

British High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson added: > The launch of Sankore sends a clear message: the UK sees enormous value in partnering with African countries on science, technology and innovation, and we are committed to bringing those partnerships to life. This grant will further strengthen our existing partnerships on science, tech and innovation, in line with our joint the UK-Ghana ST&I Strategy.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 17 September 2024.

UK Statement for the Interactive dialogue with the Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances. Delivered at the 57th HRC in Geneva.

Mr Vice President, the United Kingdom would like to thank the Working Group for its report and for the insights provided.

The UK strongly condemns all instances of enforced disappearance; they are clear violations of human rights. As we know, this issue deeply affects the families of victims and leaves a lasting impact on their communities, as well as damaging and undermining the effectiveness of the rule of law.

We share concerns outlined in the report that limited records of disappearances do not accurately reflect the actual numbers of enforced disappearances in States, and that victims are likely to become subject to inhuman treatment and torture.

We must collectively advocate for increased global engagement to eradicate instances of these grave human rights violations.

The UK urges states to fully investigate all allegations of enforced disappearance and prosecute those responsible to provide justice for victims and their families. We must remain committed to promoting and protecting the rule of law internationally.

Members of the Working Group,

What tools for recording and raising allegations to the Working Group can be made readily available to those involved in investigating cases of enforced disappearances?

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 17 September 2024.

UK and Indonesia to sign agreements on development and critical minerals, as Development Minister visits region for first time.

• UK and Indonesia strengthen cooperation on sustainable growth, climate change and the empowerment of women and girls
• comes with Minister for Development Anneliese Dodds’ first trip to Indonesia, where she will sign 2 agreements to accelerate cooperation on development and critical minerals
• follows a major speech earlier today from the Foreign Secretary on the climate and nature crisis

The UK is committing to help accelerate the global transition to clean energy and efforts to tackle climate change. Anneliese Dodds, UK Minister of State for Development and Minister of State for Women and Equalities, has arrived in Jakarta to strengthen partnerships with Indonesia on green growth, climate, and the empowerment of women and girls.

The 3-day visit to Indonesia (16 to 19 September) is the minister’s first visit to Southeast Asia in her new role. It follows a major speech from the Foreign Secretary earlier today on the climate and nature crisis and comes as the UK and Indonesia celebrate the 75th year of their diplomatic relationship.

While in Indonesia, the minister will also sign 2 sets of bilateral memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with Indonesia’s National Planning Agency (Bappenas) on development cooperation and strategic partnership on critical minerals with the Ministry for Energy and Mineral Resources.

Based on the principle of mutual respect and partnership, these MoUs will set out ways of collaborating on Indonesia’s development objectives and on shared priorities such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to address the most pressing global challenges of our time.

Anneliese Dodds, Minister of State for Development and Minister of State for Women and Equalities, said:

The new UK government’s development mission is to build genuine partnerships to help create a world free from poverty, on a liveable planet.

Indonesia is a vast country, with a huge population and great economic potential. Strengthening our relationship with Indonesia can help us, together, to tackle the climate and nature crisis while creating sustainable jobs and growth.

I’ll be working with key figures in the Indonesian government to make progress towards those goals, securing key agreements between our 2 countries on development and critical minerals.

I will also learn how grassroots projects in Indonesia are empowering women and girls while encouraging sustainable stewardship of its abundant biodiversity and natural resources.

Gender equality is the fundamental building block of all healthy democracies, and this government is committed to putting women and girls at the heart of everything we do.

Minister Dodds is attending a number of bilateral meetings while in Indonesia, including with Energy Minister Bahlil Lahadalia, Vice Foreign Minister Pahala Mansury, Minister for National Development Planning Suharso Monoarfa and Minister of Forestry and Environment Siti Nurbaya Bakar. Discussions will focus on cooperation on climate, green growth, energy transition, the international development agenda and more.

The minister will also attend discussions on progressing Indonesia’s Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP). The JETP provides a finance package and technical assistance to support Indonesia’s shift to clean energy and global efforts to tackle climate change, unlocking new projects, jobs and drive economic growth.

While currently powered mostly by coal, Indonesia has massive renewable energy potential. Effective, more sustainable management of Indonesian forests coupled with helping it shift to cleaner energy is in everyone’s interests. UK technical know-how and access to finance will help make this happen – tackling the climate crisis and creating new economic growth in the process.

The minister will travel to the South Sulawesi province in East Indonesia to see how the UK is supporting local climate and development initiatives. She will engage with local communities to learn how they protect the environment through eco-tourism and community-led green growth practices, generating local revenues while supporting long-term education for women and girls.

The visit builds on the new UK government’s modernised approach to development, working hand in hand with diplomacy, resetting the UK’s relationship with the Global South and building partnerships based on genuine respect.

It complements the climate and nature ambitions set out in Foreign Secretary David Lammy’s major speech at Kew Gardens in London today, where he announced a Global Clean Power Alliance, plans to unlock more climate finance, and action to halt the decline in global biodiversity.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 16 September 2024.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni released a joint statement today.

Today we, the Prime Ministers of Italy and the United Kingdom, meet in Rome to celebrate the deep friendship between our countries.

Our countries are the closest partners and Allies. But we want to go further still. Today we agreed on our joint ambition to make this relationship count for even more, bilaterally and internationally.

We believe that this strategic relationship between the UK and Italy is more important than ever. In a world of danger and uncertainty, it is vital that Britain and Italy stand together. Here in Rome we agreed some practical measures to make that strategic relationship stronger than it has ever been, in full accordance with Italy’s membership of the EU and UK’s relationship with the EU.

The UK-Italy Memorandum of Understanding on Bilateral Cooperation gives us a strong foundation. But now we need to go further. Today we set out our ambition for the future: driving growth in both of our economies, and placing the defence and security of our people at the heart of all we do, including in support of Italy’s current Presidency of the G7, as well as in the context of the UK’s ambition to reset the relationship between the UK and the EU.

We agreed on our determination to defend freedom and democracy. We discussed Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine and the hybrid threats the Russian State poses to Europe more widely. We reaffirm our pledge to stand resolutely with Ukraine for as long as it takes. We are determined to contribute to Ukraine’s reconstruction, look forward to the conference which Italy will host in 2025, and recalled the importance of delivering on the $50bn ERA loans the G7 agreed in Apulia.

We discussed the conflict in the Middle East and the need for the release of all hostages, an immediate ceasefire and de-escalation on all sides, and for the rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian aid. We reaffirmed our commitment to working closely together and with our European partners to address the new, destabilising, strategic environment. As NATO Allies we reaffirmed our full commitment to NATO and its missions and look forward to the Italian Navy and Italian Airforce participating in UK carrier operations in 2025 and the next meeting of the 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministers.

We agreed the vital importance of our collaborative defence programmes, including GCAP, for our shared national security interests and respective defence industrial capabilities, and we welcome the continued progress we are making. We emphasised the importance of all European partners working together to strengthen European defence industrial resilience. This includes maximising mutual export opportunities, jointly promoting our complex weapons capabilities and supporting multinational initiatives aimed at strengthening NATO and Europe. Effective NATO and EU cooperation will be key in these regards.

Both our countries, together with our European partners, share the same challenges from irregular migration. We will only make progress by working more closely together, including under the auspices of the Rome Process and with our multilateral partners, including the EU’s global alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling and the G7 Framework. Within the context of the Rome Process we agreed to jointly promote migration partnerships with countries of origin and transit, whilst also deepening our cooperation through practical measures, such as voluntary humanitarian returns and to explore further areas of common action.

We will significantly enhance our cross-border cooperation, including through the UK’s new Border Security Command, to take down the criminal organisations who profit from putting lives at risk. To this end, we will promote enhanced bilateral cooperation on investigative capacities, engaging relevant authorities in countries of origin, transit, and destination. We will encourage and improve data exchanges. We will utilise a “follow the money” approach to enhance cooperation on asset freezing and confiscation, looking to develop a joint taskforce on combating illicit financial flows. We are committed to going further in dismantling the supply chains of maritime equipment that undermine the security of our borders. We will work together to take stronger prosecutorial action against those criminals behind this vile trade. We will also maximise the opportunities to bring European and global partners together, including where possible through Europol and INTERPOL, to tackle the shared problems of organised immigration crime. We also commit to collaborate on raising awareness and informing potential migrants on the risks associated with migrant smuggling and trafficking in persons, to deter them from embarking on perilous routes. We will leverage the Joint Strategic Security Committee and the Strategic Migration Partnership to keep working together on concrete follow-ups.

We will also work together to cooperate on wider criminal justice matters, by rapidly taking forward consideration of a wider bilateral agreement on enhancing experience sharing and mutual learning across the full breadth of our criminal justice systems, including concluding negotiations on our Prisoner Transfer Agreement.

Our trade relationship is flourishing, with bilateral trade flows worth £50 billion. New investment decisions, including the £485 million (€574 million) announced today, will boost jobs and growth and demonstrate our strong trade relationship. We have agreed that unlocking bilateral trade opportunities and promoting ease of doing business will be a priority for discussions between our Ministers and we look forward to a meeting of Italian and British CEOs in London in early 2025. We agreed to sign a wide-ranging Science MoU, as part of a UK-Italy Science, Innovation and Tech Dialogue, early next year.

The ties between our peoples lie at the heart of the friendship between our countries. Over 600,000 Italians live in the United Kingdom and tens of thousands of British citizens in Italy, with millions more visiting each year. Today the first cohort of UK-Italy Young Leaders from our joint programme launched last year are meeting tech leaders, cultural organisations and business representatives in London. We intend to further enhance cooperation on strengthening people to people links, and we strongly support maximising the existing opportunities for high school students to visit and study in both our countries.

Here today in Rome we commit together to opening an exciting and ambitious new chapter in the long and warm relations between Italy and the United Kingdom, full of promise and opportunity. We look forward to working closely together on this shared endeavour in the months ahead.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 16 September 2024.

Statement by UK Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Barbara Woodward, at the UN Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East.

Thank you, President, and like others, I join you in thanking Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator Kaag and Executive Director Da Silva for your briefings. The UK strongly supports the UN’s tireless efforts to scale up aid into Gaza and pays tribute to you and the whole UN community for your work under increasingly difficult circumstances.

As you said, your briefing was sober and sombre. It couldn’t be otherwise describing an intolerable humanitarian situation in Gaza. As we’ve heard, over 41,000 people have now been killed, tens of thousands more are injured. 17,000 children are without parents. And 101 civilians remain hostage in Gaza, subject to horrific and inhumane conditions for almost a year.

We remain concerned too about the risk of wider regional escalation. We condemn the Houthi attack over the weekend, and we reiterate our demand for an immediate ceasefire and for Hamas to release all hostages.

President, we welcome the news that the first round of the UN’s polio vaccine campaign in Gaza has now concluded, facilitated by Israel’s implementation of agreed tactical pauses.

Despite the challenges – including the attack on a UN vaccination convoy last week – this shows that deconfliction can work where there is a political will.

So, first, we now need to see this capacity for deconfliction applied to the wider humanitarian operation. Israel has committed to flood Gaza with aid: but this has not materialised. This is unacceptable.

Second, President, mass Israeli evacuation notices and the use of heavy weaponry mean that nowhere is safe in Gaza. We join the Secretary-General’s call for compliance with international law, especially the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution in attacks. We are horrified by the further killing of aid workers.

Just last week, as colleagues have said, we heard reports of 18 people, including six UNRWA staff members as the Secretary-General reported, killed by an Israeli military strike on the al-Jaouni school-turned shelter.

In total, 300 aid workers have been killed in this conflict. And we repeat our condolences to their families and their loved ones. And we reiterate that humanitarian workers must be allowed to carry out their work safely.

Third, the UK will continue to play a leading role in addressing this humanitarian crisis – including through our renewed funding for UNRWA, and support for other aid agencies providing lifesaving relief, as well as continued advocacy.

Colleagues, we are all rightly focussed on the immediate priority of securing a ceasefire and a hostage release deal. And we fully support US, Qatari and Egyptian efforts and call on both Israel and Hamas to take the deal on the table.

But we must also consider what comes next. There will be an enormous task in helping those in Gaza to rebuild. Early recovery will include clearing unexploded ordinance and rubble and providing essential services.

The rebuilding of Gaza must be accompanied by the rebuilding of hope. Hope for an end to this cycle of violence. Hope for long-term peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis alike.

This can be achieved only with a two-state solution, which affords Palestinians their inalienable right to self-determination alongside security for Israel.