Tag: Press Release

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 29 February 2024.

Statement for the Interactive Dialogue with the High Commissioner – oral update on: Occupied Palestinian Territories. Delivered by UK Human Rights Ambassador Rita French.

High Commissioner, thank you for your report and update.

On 7 October, Israel suffered the worst terror attack in its history at the hands of Hamas.

In Gaza, Palestinian civilians are facing a devastating and growing humanitarian catastrophe.

We need to avert this. We need the fighting to stop now.

That is why we are calling for an immediate cessation – to get aid in and hostages out, then progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire with no return to fighting.

There is a desperate need for increased humanitarian support.

We have trebled humanitarian aid in Gaza to over 60 million pounds sterling including a further £4.25 million support for vulnerable women and girls.

As the occupying power, Israel has to make sure that humanitarian aid—including food, water and shelter—is available to civilians in Gaza.

The impact of IDF operations on the civilian population is deeply concerning. Already, too many civilians have been killed. International Humanitarian Law must be respected by all parties and civilians must be protected.

Mr President, we are committed to improving the lives of all Palestinians across the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

The United Kingdom continues to work intensively in support of a two-state solution that guarantees: security and stability for Israeli and Palestinian people; and two secure and sovereign states – Israel and Palestine.

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 29 February 2024.

The UK’s Statement for Enhanced ID on Human Rights in Eritrea, delivered at the UN Human Rights Council.

Thank you Mr Vice-President,

The UK thanks the speakers for their interventions, and we share their concerns, including on Eritrea’s continued policy of indefinite national service, which affects the lives of thousands, and is the reason many young Eritreans give for leaving their country. Eritrea should take steps to regularise the duration for national service and increase the exemptions to it.

Mr Vice-President,

We call again on the Government to fully respect the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, of religion or belief, and of peaceful assembly and association.  All those arbitrarily detained or held incommunicado in Eritrea must be released, including those detained solely based on their religion or belief.

We regret that the human rights situation in Eritrea is not improving.  We again call on Eritrea to re-engage with the international community, work with this Council and its mandate holders, implement fully its accepted UPR recommendations, and open itself to support and assistance, so progress toward full respect for human rights can start to be made.

A free and open society is the bedrock of stability and prosperity. The UK again restates our offer to engage with the government of Eritrea, in the hope that a better human rights situation can in turn deliver better economic opportunities for the people of Eritrea, particularly younger people.

Finally, Mr Vice-President,

We would like to ask the panellists for their assessment of whether any progress has been made or could possibly be made to hold perpetrators of human rights violations to account.

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 29 February 2024.

Two years on, the international community’s support of the principles of democracy and freedom, and the Ukrainian people’s bravery and resilience, remain steadfast.

Thank you, Mr Chair. We have recently passed 2 landmark dates in Russia’s illegal aggression against Ukraine. Over a decade ago, on 20 February 2014, Russia illegally, and unacceptably sought to annex Crimea. While, last week, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine entered the third year. That President Putin supposedly intended his full-scale invasion to be a 3-day operation is a testament to many things; to Putin’s arrogance and hubris, to his strategic miscalculation, to the international community’s steadfast support of the principles of democracy and freedom, and to the enormous bravery and resilience of the Ukrainian people.

Although the land war in Ukraine continues to be strongly contested, any territorial land gains come at enormous strategic cost to the Russian armed forces, for limited tactical gains. Russia originally deployed 130 Battalion Tactical Groups for its invasion of Ukraine, comprising 1,300 tanks, over 5,000 infantry fighting vehicles and armoured personnel carriers (IFVs and APCs), and at least 100,000 personnel. In 2 years of conflict, Russia’s losses now match – and in many cases surpass – those that comprised its original force. Confirmed Russian losses include over 2,700 tanks and 5,000 IFVs and APCs, whilst Russia’s killed and wounded stand at over 350,000 personnel.

20% of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet has now been destroyed. Further losses were sustained on 14 February 2024 when Ukrainian forces conducted a successful Uncrewed Surface Vessel attack on the Russian Ropucha-class landing craft ‘Tsezar Kunikov’. As a consequence, 3 of 10 Ropucha-class vessels have now been destroyed by Ukrainian strikes and the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Viktor Sokolov, has been removed from his post.

In the air domain, Russia has lost its second A-50 MAINSTAY early warning and airborne control aircraft in 6 weeks. NATO now has more member states as a direct consequence of Putin’s illegal war of aggression. In contrast Russia’s military alliances are diminishing in recognition of the security proposition on offer.

Mr Chair, this all matters because Russia would love for nothing more than to deflect from the realities of its strategic errors. It would like for us to debate the technical wranglings of arms control, perversely attempting to obfuscate the key point that Russia invaded another country. Russia’s continual efforts to focus on the tactical to deflect from the strategic bigger picture. This is a reinforcement of the very behaviour that enabled it to send a generation of Russian boys into the meat grinder. This has all been done as part of Putin’s vanity project to realise his imperial ambitions, the sole aim of which is to preserve power for himself and a narrow Russian elite as part of his despotic regime.

When we reflect on where things stand, 2 years after the start of the full-scale invasion, we see a stronger NATO, a defiant, democratic Ukraine, the consolidation of an international community drawn together around the principles of democratic institutions and the respect for law and sovereignty. The vast majority of members in this Forum have aligned with these principles and will stand up against a nation that believes it can invade another with impunity. The vast majority of nations recognise, that for all of Russia’s attempts to divide us, to sow misinformation, to deflect, we will remain focussed on the strategic reality that Russia invaded its neighbour, Ukraine, and we will stand by Ukraine now and for as long as it takes. Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 29 February 2024.

His Majesty King Charles III has approved the award of Honorary Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) to Mr Hirose in recognition of his exceptional contribution to furthering UK-Japan relations.

Mr Katsusada Hirose has had a long and distinguished career as a public servant, including as former Vice-Minister at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and as Governor of Oita Prefecture in Kyushu Japan from 2003 to 2023.  During his time as Governor, Mr Hirose was instrumental in building deep and lasting links between Oita Prefecture and the United Kingdom, and with Wales in particular.  His vision for closer collaboration between Wales and Oita began with the warm hospitality shown to the Welsh rugby team and fans when Oita hosted two of the Wales matches during the Rugby World Cup 2019; and it culminated in the signing in 2022 of a Memorandum of Understanding between Oita Prefecture and Wales.  Focused on developing people-to-people links, through Arts and Culture, Sport, Academia, Tourism and Food and Drink, the MOU has laid the foundation of a relationship that continues to grow from strength to strength.

The British Embassy in Tokyo and Consulate General in Osaka look forward to building on Mr Hirose’s legacy over the coming years.  We are committed to working with our partners in Oita to strengthen existing links and create new opportunities for collaboration in areas such as decarbonisation and innovation. We look forward to continuing to grow our economic, cultural and social links for the benefit of the people of both nations.