Her Majesty’s Government extends its heartfelt condolences to those in Haiti who have lost loved ones as a result of the earthquake that struck Saint-Louis du Sud yesterday morning and offer our further support for those that are currently waiting on news of loved ones in hospital or still missing since the earthquake.
In such distressing times it is easy to rush to deliver as much aid as possible. However, as we saw in the aftermath of the tragic earthquake that struck Haiti in 2010, the act of sending aid without an accurate assumption of the damage inflicted can cause pain and suffering for victims - a sentiment expressed by the Acting President of Haiti Ariel Henry in the aftermath of the most recent earthquake.
We are liaising closely with the Haitian government, the International Red Cross and regional partners to ensure that the damage caused by this earthquake is assessed accurately and aid can be delivered in a targeted manner which will provide effective assistance to the Haitian people. We stand ready to provide aid upon request of the Haitian government.
Statement by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, u/ARichTeaBiscuit, on behalf of Her Majesty's 28th Government
Deputy Speaker,
It is a continued priority for this government to hold individuals responsible for grave human rights violations, and whenever possible deter ongoing and future human rights abuses through targeted sanctions.
In line with that commitment, and recognition of the continued human rights abuses occurring in Xinjiang, under the powers given to me by the Magnitsky (Sanctions on Persons) Act, I am naming the following individuals to face asset freezes and immigration bans as set out under the Act:
- Zhu Hailin, Former Deputy Secretary of the Xinjiang Communist Party
- Chen Quanguo, Party Secretary of the Xinjiang Communist Party
- Shohrat Zakir, Chairman of the Xinjian Uyhur Autonomous Region
- Wang Junzheng, former Political Commissar of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.
- Chen Mingguo, Political Commissar of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.
- Sun Jinlong, Communist Party Secretary of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps
- Peng Jiarui, Deputy Party Secretary and Commander of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps
All of these individuals are either responsible for establishing the system of repression in Xinjiang or have continued to manage the system since their arrival in the region.
It is of the utmost importance that we send a serious message that those responsible for establishing and maintaining systems of repression will be held accountable for their actions by the United Kingdom, and these sanctions will remain in place for as long as the people of Xinjiang are faced with false imprisonment and re-education.
Debate under this statement will end on the 19th May at 10pm
On the 23rd of May the Belarusian government engaged in an abhorrent and frankly shameful act, falsifying a security threat to force Ryanair Flight 4978 to land at Minsk National Airport so that they could arrest journalist Roman Protasevich.
It is a course of action that not only flies against the foundations of the laws governing international aviation but puts countless passengers at risk around the world, the United Kingdom condemns these actions by the Belarusian authorities.
We call for the immediate release of Roman Protasevich and all other political prisoners currently held in Belarus, and we call for the ICAO Council to meet urgently to consider potential ramifications for the Belarusian government's blatant flouting of international regulations safeguarding civil aviation.
In response to this course of action and in accordance with the powers granted to me by the provided to me by the Magnitsky (Sanctions on Persons) Act, I am naming the following individuals to face asset freezes and immigration bans as they are set out under the Act:
- Viktor Khrenin, Minister of Defence
- Igor Golub, Commander of the Belarusian Air Force
- Alexander Volfovich, State Secretary of Security Council of Belarus
- Viktor Sheiman, Head of the Presidential Administration of Belarus
- Leanid Churo, General Director of Belaeronavigatsia
The Lord Swinton has submitted two written questions to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. The questions were relayed to the Government on 30 March, and the Government submitted responses by the deadline of 6 April.
The questions were:
> The SoS for Foreign said during the UQ session that an investigation into how the Osaka Accords were leaked was occurring. What is the status and progress of the investigation?
> Does the government know yet if the documents were leaked from the government and or cabinet?
The Secretary of State's response is as follows:
> My Lords,
> Unfortunately, as of this moment, we have not been able to locate the source of the leaked documents regarding the negotiations of the Osaka Accords carried out by the previous governing coalition.
> As the documentation was from the previous parliamentary term and was fundamentally outdated in regards to the negotiating stance of this government it is still possible that the leak came from outside the current government from an individual that still had access to the original documents from the preceding term, however, as we have been unable to locate the source of the leak it is impossible to say with certainty if this is true or not.
> Given the cordial continuation of talks between D11 members in regards to the final ratification of the Osaka Accords we are confident that this leak of outdated information did not outwardly harm our reputation with our international partners.
> Furthermore, as no further leaks have been released in relation to the current Osaka Accords we are confident that the measures taken in response to this incident have reduced the possibility of future leaks if they came from within government, and removed the possibility of them coming from outside government entirely.
This statement may be debated until 9 April 2021 at 10pm BST.
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, /u/ARichTeaBiscuit, delivered the following statement to the House on the passage of LM128, the Iraq Motion:
My Lords,
In light of the successful passage of LM128, I wish to make the following statement on Iraq, the Kurds and this government's commitment to the security of the Iraqi people.
Iraq has been deeply scarred by over two decades of conflict and decades of authoritarian rule which utilised the tactics of religious and ethnic division and repression to remain in power, as LM128 mentioned the failure of successive governments to take adequate measures to heal these deep divides contributed to the creation and rise of Daesh which has inflicted great pain and suffering on the Iraqi people, including that of the Kurdistan Region which was at the forefront of the fight against Daesh from the beginning.
Despite the success of the military campaign against Daesh in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region it is of the utmost importance that the United Kingdom continue to work together with our Iraqi and Kurdish partners to ensure that the same fundamental issues that resulted in the rapid rise of Daesh in late 2013 aren’t created again in the future. This isn’t just restricted to continued cooperation between the British Armed Forces and their Iraqi counterparts, but also support for the entrenchment of institutions that transparently tackle issues revolving around corruption and ethnic and religious division, three issues that led to the deteriorating situation in Iraq all those years ago.
Furthermore, the crimes orchestrated against the Iraqi people by Daesh during their campaign of terror must be fully documented, so that those responsible for inflicting such suffering will face justice in the future, and as part of this commitment, the United Kingdom will be supporting endeavours with the Iraqi government and the United Nations to investigate the crimes that took place during the conflict in Iraq to ensure those responsible are brought to justice.
We will continue to work together with Iraq and our international partners to ensure a better tomorrow for the Iraqi people.
This statement may be debated until 9 April 2021 at 10pm BST.
Yesterday afternoon representatives from the D11 held talks to discuss the ongoing violent crackdown on peaceful protesters in Myanmar, which has resulted in several deaths and the harassment and detention of journalists from D11 covering these violent actions.
In these talks the D11 re-stated its commitment to standing up for human rights and the international rule of law, and we therefore repeat our calls for Myanmar to respect freedom of assembly, take actions to curtail the violent actions of the security services and restore democratic institutions.
During these discussions representatives of the D11 also agreed on the importance of withholding military support from Myanmar, in the form of training and the transfer of military equipment. The D11 agreed to follow the actions of both the United Kingdom and the United States on enacting sanctions and export bans on Myanmar.
Thank You.
#Statements from the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs regarding the grounded Russian submarine and the UK’s diplomatic response
Mr Deputy Speaker,
With your leave I will deliver a further update on the rapidly unfolding situation in the Firth of Forth. Her Majesty’s Government undertook to include Parliament at every stage of this process and we fully intend to make good on that. However, before I go on to apprise honourable and right honourable members of several crucial matters that transpired subsequent to the statement I made last night, I would simply say that the gravity of this situation cannot be overstated. I am sure I need not impress upon anyone the requirement for measure, for equanimity, and at a time like this, for unity.
Without further ado, Mr Deputy Speaker, last night, after my conference with the Minister-Counsellor, the President of the Russian Federation personally telephoned and requested I speak with him; I of course obliged. Alas, the conversation was not a productive one, with Mr Putin refusing to account for the presence of his submarine in British territorial waters and levelling baseless accusations at the United Kingdom. I bitterly regret my having to utter this next sentence, but it is a profoundly sad fact that such is the contempt Mr Putin clearly has for the United Kingdom, its people and its values, that he devolved into insulting this country in a manner one would expect to hear in a school playground. Mr Putin then proceeded to, despite my, as the democratically elected Prime Minister of this country, robustly objecting and telling him in no uncertain terms not to do so, instructed aircraft of the Russian Air Force to breach the sovereign airspace of this country. Mr Deputy Speaker, we all know, instinctively, regardless of political belief, that such a flagrant violation of this country’s sovereignty and reckless assault on our peace and security and human lives, is unequivocally, irreducibly, unjustifiably wrong. The rapid reaction Typhoon squadron based at RAF Lossiemouth swiftly responded to the threat and safely escorted the Russian aircraft out of British airspace, and stands ready, today, tomorrow and beyond, to do the same again.
Late yesterday evening, at a COBRA meeting, Her Majesty’s Government saw fit to countenance an SBS engagement of the submariners refusing entry to our experts. While a decisive and grevious measure, scientific advice placing an 18 hour countd
... keep reading on reddit ➡Mr Deputy Speaker,
Hong Kong is an area which, for obvious reasons, we have ties to and will continue to play our part in. Since the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People’s Republic of China, there have been tensions between Hong Kong, often it’s people rather than its government, and China. Since last March, these have reached ahead with large scale demonstrations against the Chinese Government influence in Hong Kong and against its own executive.
A series of events, including protests within the Legislative Council of Hong Kong during a speech from Carrie Lam, the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, led to another outbreak of protests this weekend. On November 11 a protestor was shot in the chest by a policeman at a crossroad when trying to approach the policeman who was trying to detain another protestor. The protestor lays in critical condition in a hospital. A pro-Beijing protestor was set on fire by protestors on the same day, he too is in critical condition in a hospital. We call on both the Chinese / Hong Kong authorities and protesters to show restraint in these troubling times, although we understand why protesters are so passionate about the issues they are campaigning on. This Government stands with the peaceful protesters in Hong Kong simply seeking such basic human rights as the right of self-determination and democracy.
The Chief Executive’s reaction to reporters about these incidents was that “We [the Hong Kong Executive] will spare no effort in finding ways and means that could end the violence in Hong Kong as soon as possible.” Let me be clear, these are words we expect to be upheld through dialogue between authorities and pro-democracy protest leaders.
This Government condemns the actions taken by the police of Hong Kong in shooting the protesters and the way the Hong Kong Executive have continuously poorly handled this situation. We also condemn the setting on fire of a pro-Beijing protestor. We call upon the Chinese Government, the Hong Kong Executive and the protestors in Hong Kong to seek common grounds which can allow for an end to the scenes of violence we have seen on the streets of Hong Kong.
I commend this statement to the House.
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This statement was delivered by The Rt. Hon Sir /u/HiddeVdV96 KD MBE PC MP, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, on behalf of the 22nd Government.
Statement from the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on the death of Daesh leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
It has been confirmed that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the brutal terrorist organization Daesh, has committed suicide. Following a US military raid, al-Baghdadi was cornered in a tunnel and detonated his suicide vest, also killing three of his young children. The British government expresses its thanks to US special forces for carrying out this important operation and are grateful that they suffered no casualties. This is the latest in a series of significant defeats inflicted upon Daesh in recent times. Their organizational capacity has collapsed. Their financial linkages have been severed. Their land possessions are now all but non-existent. Their fighters are predominately dead, captured, or fleeing. But significant progress on the defeat of one group should not be mistaken for fundamental change in regional dynamics. The causes that led to ISIS’s creation remain, and if the international community doesn’t continue and increase its efforts to work with the Middle East and North African region as equals, those material conditions will continue. The United Kingdom stands ready to be an important part of this conversation about rebuilding this region and will commit to assisting in resolving these issues.
With the consent of /u/LieutenantGaffer , I shall be taking on the position of Foreign Secretary the Lord Home, the distinguished aristocratic politician, under the government of Prime Minister Harold Macmillan
