Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office

The UK maintains strong relations with both the US and Denmark, including as close NATO Allies, and on the shared priority of security in the High North.

The UK has a longstanding policy of respecting self-determination. The Foreign Secretary and I have been clear that Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and the future of their constitutional arrangements is a matter for the people and Government of Greenland, and the Kingdom of Denmark.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office is taking steps with international partners to address the specific risks that female humanitarian workers face. We are investing in protective measures that our partners need to safely work, championing International Humanitarian Law, and using UK seats at key multilateral forums to raise awareness and promote accountability.

The UK uses its seat at the United Nations (UN) to promote the meaningful participation and protection of women in crisis response and peacebuilding, counter reprisals against women peacebuilders and women's rights defenders and build protection against conflict related sexual violence, within UN Security Council country and thematic resolutions.

These efforts contribute towards building a safer and more protective environment for female aid workers to carry out their work and help to facilitate safer access to humanitarian assistance, especially for women and girls.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office champions the Aid Worker Security Database which independently tracks incidents involving international and national aid workers including kidnapping, death and injury. The UK promotes the review of incidents causing harm to civilians, including aid workers, through its seats at multilateral fora such as the United Nations Security Council, as well as in partnership with the International Criminal Court and International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Commission.

Bilateral diplomatic engagement also supports independent review of incidents that harm aid workers. For example, the UK has pressed Israel to conclude the Military Advocate General's investigation into the killing of seven World Central Kitchen aid workers, including three British nationals, in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza on 1 April 2024. Our priority is to ensure lessons are learned which lead to lasting improvements in aid worker safety.

The UK uses its seats at key multilateral fora such as the United Nations Security Council, its bilateral relationships, and its partnerships with humanitarian actors on the front line to encourage parties to consent to humanitarian relief operations, facilitate unimpeded access, and protect civilians including humanitarian aid workers.

We provide direct investment to support the protective measures our partners require to work safely, the freedom to use different approaches such as cash transfers to increase access to aid and reduce risks, and flexible funding to enable our partners to strengthen their risk mitigation strategies when required.

In May 2024, the UK co-sponsored UN Security Council resolution 2730. This resolution strongly condemned attacks and all forms of violence, including sexual and gender-based violence, threats, and intimidation, against humanitarian personnel and United Nations and associated personnel, their premises and assets.

The UK is committed to combating Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) and working with global partners towards achieving the global goal target to end the epidemic of NTDs by 2030, including for Noma. The UK is a signatory to the Kigali Declaration on NTDs and supports the World Health Organization (WHO's) roadmap for Neglected Tropical Diseases 2021-2030.

The UK supports the WHO's work, including on NTDs. Other wider work that will also support reducing the prevalence and impact of Noma includes the department's support to strengthening country health systems, including in Noma prevalent countries such as Nigeria, and work to address factors associated with Noma such as malnutrition, other infectious diseases, and extreme poverty.

We strongly welcome the ambitions of the ReArm programme and believe it is in the interest of European defence to create a structure that allows member states to partner with the UK. Officials and Ministers frequently engage EU counterparts, including High Representative Kaja Kallas, who met with the Defence and Foreign Secretaries in London last month, the first visit by an EU High Representative since the UK left the EU. During which they discussed the need for EU defence financing and wider defence industrial initiatives to be inclusive of third countries like the UK and we will continue to do so.

This government stands firm on human rights, including in Xinjiang, where China continues to persecute and arbitrarily detain Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim minorities.

We raise our concerns at the highest levels: the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, Chancellor and Energy Secretary all raised human rights recently with their counterparts (President Xi, Foreign Minister Wang, Vice Premier He and Vice Premier Ding respectively). We continue to coordinate efforts with our international partners and work in multilateral fora to hold China to account for human rights violations. Most recently we raised the persecution of Uyghurs within our Item 4 statement at the Human Rights Council.

The Sudan conflict has created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world with over 30 million people in need of assistance. This financial year the UK will provide £226.5 million in life-saving aid towards the crisis. Since the conflict started more than 2.5 million people have received UK funded humanitarian aid. As part of this, we are one of the largest donors of the UN-led Sudan Humanitarian Fund (SHF) which provides support to local and national responders, Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs) and a consortium of international non-governmental organisations. Last year, we provided £23 million to the SHF. We continue to diversify our funding to ensure it reaches local responders such as the ERRs. We are unable to provide more detailed information around how many people the UK's aid reaches through the ERRs specifically.

The conflict in Sudan is having a devastating impact on children. In 2024, admissions for severe acute malnutrition (SAM) rose by nearly 44% compared to 2023 with an unprecedented 431,000 children treated by the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF). Actual numbers of SAM are likely to be higher, but access constraints and insecurity complicate the ability of relief organisations to assess needs and deliver aid. In late 2024 UNICEF assessed that nearly 90% of Sudan's school age children (17 million against a population of 19 million) were no longer in school with armed violence a key driver. Both malnutrition rates and the number of children out of education will continue to rise whilst the fighting continues.

This financial year (2024-2025), the UK will provide £226.5 million in life-saving aid towards the crisis. As part of this, we support UNICEF who are providing lifesaving nutrition programmes to some of the most vulnerable children in Sudan. The UK also supports Education Cannot Wait, providing safe learning spaces and psychological support to 200,000 vulnerable children in refugee and host communities in Chad, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan, Central Africa Republic and Uganda. We are also one of the largest donors to the Global Partnership for Education who are delivering urgent support to children across Sudan.

As a close friend and ally of Turkey the Government is closely monitoring the situation. Recent arrests are subject to ongoing domestic Turkish legal process. The UK expects Turkey to uphold its international commitments and the rule of law, including swift and transparent judicial processes. We regularly engage with the Turkish government and there has been Ministerial contact with counterparts in recent days to raise these issues. The UK supports democracy, human rights and the rule of law across the world and will always support the fundamental rights to freedom of speech, peaceful assembly and peaceful protest.

We put survivors at the heart of everything we do, including through regular collaboration with the Survivor Advisory Group and Survivor Champions. Since 2019, the UK has committed up to £7.85 million to the Global Survivors Fund (GSF) to support the delivery of interim reparative measure projects globally. Through this support, GSF has enhanced access to health and psychosocial care, education and financial support for over 1000 survivors in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In Sudan, we are working with United Nations and Non-Governmental Organisations partners to provide safe spaces, mobile clinic treatment, dignity kits and psycho-social services for survivors. We will continue to work with international partners, including through the International Alliance on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, to prevent and respond to conflict-related sexual violence and to provide the holistic support survivors need.

The UK is working with partners to prevent a return to conflict in the region by supporting the implementation of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement. On 13 March, the UK issued a joint statement with the EU and 23 countries emphasising our support for the agreement and urging all parties to refrain from violence and engage in urgent dialogue. We regularly engage with all parties and the African Union guarantors, to reiterate the importance of implementation and encourage political dialogue to overcome obstacles on the return of internally displaced persons and other outstanding issues.

The UK provides support for the demobilisation, disarmament, and reintegration process, funds international and Ethiopian human rights monitoring and supports investigatory capacity building across the country. The UK is aware of reports of illicit trade contributing to tensions in the region.

The UK is working with partners to prevent a return to conflict in the region by supporting the implementation of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement. On 13 March, the UK issued a joint statement with the EU and 23 countries emphasising our support for the agreement and urging all parties to refrain from violence and engage in urgent dialogue. We regularly engage with all parties and the African Union guarantors, to reiterate the importance of implementation and encourage political dialogue to overcome obstacles on the return of internally displaced persons and other outstanding issues.

The UK provides support for the demobilisation, disarmament, and reintegration process, funds international and Ethiopian human rights monitoring and supports investigatory capacity building across the country. The UK is aware of reports of illicit trade contributing to tensions in the region.

The UK is working with partners to prevent a return to conflict in the region by supporting the implementation of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement. On 13 March, the UK issued a joint statement with the EU and 23 countries emphasising our support for the agreement and urging all parties to refrain from violence and engage in urgent dialogue. We regularly engage with all parties and the African Union guarantors, to reiterate the importance of implementation and encourage political dialogue to overcome obstacles on the return of internally displaced persons and other outstanding issues.

The UK provides support for the demobilisation, disarmament, and reintegration process, funds international and Ethiopian human rights monitoring and supports investigatory capacity building across the country. The UK is aware of reports of illicit trade contributing to tensions in the region.

The UK is working with partners to prevent a return to conflict in the region by supporting the implementation of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement. On 13 March, the UK issued a joint statement with the EU and 23 countries emphasising our support for the agreement and urging all parties to refrain from violence and engage in urgent dialogue. We regularly engage with all parties and the African Union guarantors, to reiterate the importance of implementation and encourage political dialogue to overcome obstacles on the return of internally displaced persons and other outstanding issues.

The UK provides support for the demobilisation, disarmament, and reintegration process, funds international and Ethiopian human rights monitoring and supports investigatory capacity building across the country. The UK is aware of reports of illicit trade contributing to tensions in the region.

The UK is increasingly working alongside the private sector and philanthropies to deliver Sustainable Development Goal 4. We are a founding donor of the new International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd), which unlocks additional finance from multilateral development banks, amounting to $7 for every $1 of Official Development Assistance. IFFEd is also similarly partnering with philanthropies to unlock further funding. In addition, the Girls' Education Skills Partnership (GESP) programme is another UK-funded initiative working with the private sector to provide high-quality skills training to young women aged 13 to 24 in Nigeria and Bangladesh. GESP draws on resources of the private sector (including companies such as Unilever, Pearson, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Microsoft, Accenture, Standard Chartered, Vodafone and Cognizant) combined with the technical experience of UNICEF to support girls' learning so that they can earn a living.

The UK is committed to ending AIDS as a public health threat. The US decision to suspend USAID, pending a review, is a matter for the US. Progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals, including ending HIV and AIDS by 2030, requires collective action. The UK will continue to work with all international partners toward that vision.

This Government remains strongly committed to tackling the international climate and nature crises. The UK played a key role at the Biodiversity COP16 Conference in February, which agreed a strategy to mobilise more finance for nature. We are working closely with a wide range of partners to build global ambition on nature ahead of London Climate Action Week in June and COP30 in Brazil.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's LGBT+ rights programme aims to transform the lives of millions of LGBT+ people around the world. This is done by tackling systematic violence, persecution, and exclusion by addressing outdated discriminatory laws, promoting protective legislation, empowering civil society organisations, and supporting the most vulnerable LGBT+ people in conflict and crisis. All programme proposals are required to set out how they will deliver and measure value for money. Successful partners are required to submit reports for the rigorous monitoring and evaluation process. These reports include a results framework or log frame to track progress against targets of the project alongside quarterly and annual progress reports, which allow us to look at the effectiveness, efficiency, efficacy, and utility of any work supported. All the information received from the partner and ongoing conversations throughout the years which the project is active allows us to track value for money.

Further engagement on the details of the Marine Protected Area will take place as part of the implementation of the Agreement post-signature.

The UK has been advocating and building international support for norms, rules and principles of responsible space behaviours at the United Nations to tackle threats to space systems, reduce the risk of conflict and preserve strategic stability. Since 5 July 2024, the UK has:

Secured support for the UK-led resolution on responsible space behaviours at the UN General Assembly.

Ensured the mandate of the UN Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space in all its Aspects (PAROS) included norms, rules and principles of responsible space behaviours.

Used the International Security Fund to support diplomatic engagement with a broad range of countries on how responsible space behaviours can address space threats.

Shaped discussion on responsible space behaviours in the Conference on Disarmament.

Both sides remain committed to concluding a deal on the future of the Chagos Archipelago which protects the long-term effective operation of the joint UK-US base on Diego Garcia.   Once an agreement is reached and the Treaty is signed, the Treaty will be put before both Houses for scrutiny under the Constitutional Reform and Governance (CRaG) process in the usual way.

The Foreign Secretary and his predecessors have engaged the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) participants, and the US. The Foreign Secretary and our officials continue to engage France, Germany, Iran, China and the EU as JCPoA participants, as well as the US, in support of a diplomatic solution.

The UK's position is clear - we do not and will not pay reparations.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office median age for its laptop estate issued to officials is currently 1 year.

The review recommendations are now being considered as part of the Foreign Secretary's wider work to reform the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. Parliamentarians will be included as part of any approach to further consultation.

The UK and Canada are the closest of allies. We have shared values and are committed to ensuring critical mineral markets are diverse, ethical, fair and transparent. We continue to engage with Canada including through the Critical Minerals Dialogue, the Minerals Security Partnership, the International Energy Agency, and the G7.

The safety and security of children globally spans across all six of the Foreign Secretary's priorities. At the Nutrition for Growth (N4G) summit, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) are funding Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Civil Society Organisation (CSO) network advocacy work to elevate youth participation and representation at the summit, directly facilitating their inclusion and highlighting the experience and needs of mothers and children in their communities. FCDO also are funding a UK and a global south partner country youth delegate to attend the Commission on Population and Development summit. FCDO continues to strengthen CSO partnerships, ensuring grassroots voices are heard and amplified globally, as the Foreign Secretary outlined in his Human Rights Day speech in December 2024.

The conflict has created a displacement crisis with more than 3 million Sudanese refugees seeking safety in neighbouring countries, and a further 8.8 million people internally displaced within Sudan. In November 2024, the Foreign Secretary announced a £113 million aid package, which doubled the UK's aid commitment to £226.5 million. This package will assist over 600,000 people in Sudan and 700,000 people in neighbouring countries who had fled the conflict, including Chad and South Sudan. Education Cannot Wait will also receive UK support to provide safe learning spaces and psychosocial support for 200,000 vulnerable children in refugee and host communities in Chad, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan, Central African Republic and Uganda.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) received a request for access to information held on file reference FCO 37/3979 in June 2018. A response was issued four months later in October 2018. The material in question is subject to ongoing legal proceedings under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. We cannot comment on ongoing legal cases.

The Government recognises the important contribution cooperatives have made in serving local communities around the world. Cooperatives are a tried-and-tested model in international development, that can enable citizens and producers to access services or markets and strengthen their voice in local processes. Cooperatives can enable sustainable and inclusive development centred on self-help, democratic ownership, and concern for the community. The UK has supported cooperatives and producer organisations in developing countries, including, for example in agriculture through funding to the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (GAFSP), which supports producer organisations, and the Commercial Agriculture for Smallholders and Agribusiness Programme (CASA), which partners with cooperatives and small agribusinesses in low-income countries to improve smallholder farmers' access to markets.

I discussed the recent violence in Syria with my Turkish counterpart, Deputy Foreign Minister Nuh Yilmaz, during our meeting at the Syria Donors' Pledging Conference in Brussels on 17 March. The Foreign Secretary also discussed this issue with the Turkish Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, on 10 March.

As soon as the Foreign Secretary took office, he ordered a review into Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL), which concluded that there was a clear risk that UK export items might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations IHL. I also receive legal advice as appropriate on the UK's obligations. The IHL assessments continue and we are closely monitoring developments in Gaza and will keep this position under review. The UK has raised compliance with IHL with Israel at the most senior levels and has discussed it with G7 partners.

We have suspended relevant export licences to Israel for use in military operations in the Gaza conflict. We have continued to review export licences for items to Israel and assess that there are no extant licences for items that might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of IHL. This is subject to the specific measures set out before Parliament excluding exports to the global F-35 programme from the scope of the suspension.

Our longstanding position is that it is for the courts to determine whether or not a crime has been committed.

We condemn Iran's severe repression of Freedom of Religion or Belief including against Christians. The UK was integral to the delivery of the Iran human rights resolution, adopted by the UN Third Committee in November 2024, which called on Iran to cease monitoring individuals on account of their religious identity, to release all religious practitioners imprisoned for their membership in or activities as part of a religious minority group, and to ensure religious rights are upheld. We will continue to raise human rights issues directly with the Iranian government, including through our Ambassador in Tehran.

As the Foreign Secretary said to the House on 20 March, we strongly oppose Israel's resumption of hostilities. We urgently want to see a return to a ceasefire. More bloodshed is in no-one's interest. Hamas must release all the hostages and negotiations must resume. We want Israel and Hamas to re-engage with negotiations, we continue to condemn Hamas, of course, for their actions on 7 October 2023, their refusal to release the hostages, and their ongoing threat to Israel, but we are also resolute in calling on Israel to abide by international law and to lift the unacceptable restrictions on aid and demand the protection of civilians. Since the renewed outbreak of hostilities, the Foreign Secretary has spoken to Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs, Ron Dermer on 20 March and to his Israeli counterpart Foreign Minister Sa'ar on 21 March.

As the Foreign Secretary said to the House on 20 March, we strongly oppose Israel's resumption of hostilities. We urgently want to see a return to a ceasefire. More bloodshed is in no-one's interest. Hamas must release all the hostages and negotiations must resume. We want Israel and Hamas to re-engage with negotiations, we continue to condemn Hamas, of course, for their actions on 7 October 2023, their refusal to release the hostages, and their ongoing threat to Israel, but we are also resolute in calling on Israel to abide by international law and to lift the unacceptable restrictions on aid and demand the protection of civilians. Since the renewed outbreak of hostilities, the Foreign Secretary has spoken to Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs, Ron Dermer on 20 March and to his Israeli counterpart Foreign Minister Sa'ar on 21 March.

As the Foreign Secretary said to the House on 20 March, we strongly oppose Israel's resumption of hostilities. We urgently want to see a return to a ceasefire. More bloodshed is in no-one's interest. Hamas must release all the hostages and negotiations must resume. We want Israel and Hamas to re-engage with negotiations, we continue to condemn Hamas, of course, for their actions on 7 October 2023, their refusal to release the hostages, and their ongoing threat to Israel, but we are also resolute in calling on Israel to abide by international law and to lift the unacceptable restrictions on aid and demand the protection of civilians. Since the renewed outbreak of hostilities, the Foreign Secretary has spoken to Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs, Ron Dermer on 20 March and to his Israeli counterpart Foreign Minister Sa'ar on 21 March.

As my statement to the House on 10 March made clear, the interim Syrian authorities must ensure the protection of all Syrians. In my meeting with interim Syrian Foreign Minister, Asaad al-Shaibani on 17 March we discussed this, and the need for a Syrian-led political transition that leads to an inclusive, non-sectarian and representative government. We will judge the interim authorities by their actions and will continue to advocate for the right of Freedom of Religion or Belief in Syria.

The UK recognises the significance of the second World Summit for Social Development (WSSD), marking 30 years since the first World Social Summit in Copenhagen in 1995 which set strong foundational principles on poverty eradication, full and productive employment, and equalities and social inclusion as interconnected priorities - with people at the centre. WSSD will be an important moment to reinvigorate and modernise the priorities set out in the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action, aligning them to the United Nation's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Effective modern partnerships will be essential to deliver on commitments.

As we are eight months away from the conference, we have not yet finalised the UK's delegation, at official and ministerial levels. The UK is committed to attending the World Summit for Social Development at senior levels, demonstrating UK commitment to key social development agendas.

The UK views the Fourth Financing for Development Conference (FfD4) as a pivotal moment to secure global consensus on a modernised development finance landscape that addresses the interlinked challenges our world is facing: be that climate change, stagnating growth, stalling poverty reduction, increasing vulnerability or rising conflict. Reforming the Global Financial System must be at the heart of our efforts.

As we are three months away from the conference, we have not yet finalised the UK's delegation, at official and ministerial levels. The UK is committed to attending FfD4 at senior levels, demonstrating UK commitment to the financing for development agenda.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's (FCDO) John Bunyan Fund provides funding to overseas posts to support the promotion and protection of freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all around the world. UK posts are invited to submit applications that support the central objective of the fund: to curtail FoRB violations and abuses. Diplomatic missions have full control over the exact design and scope of project work to best develop an intervention that suits their specific in-country context and priorities and is complementary to any other financing they receive. Projects must provide value for money, have a clear strategic focus and realistic, tangible outcomes in keeping with FCDO priorities.

Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office officials and Ministers regularly engage Spanish counterparts on a range of issues affecting UK nationals, including on visa matters. The UK and the EU allow for visa-free short-term travel in line with their respective arrangements for third country nationals. The UK allows EU citizens short-term visa-free travel for up to six months. Meanwhile, the EU allows for travel within the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any rolling 180-day period; this is standard for third countries travelling visa-free to the EU. Applications for visas to visit or stay for longer periods of time would be processed according to the rules of individual Member States.

Due to the ongoing issues highlighted in the answer to his previous Parliamentary Question (28896), the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is still to receive a number of invoices for these costs, and it is not possible to provide an accurate figure at this time.

The Foreign Secretary met European and US counterparts 12-14 March at the G7 Foreign Ministers' meeting in Canada, where they discussed next steps on sanctions and the recent violence in coastal areas of Syria. In my statement in Parliament last week, and in the Foreign Secretary's public statement on 9 March, we made clear that the interim authorities must ensure the protection of all Syrians. The UK has consistently advocated for an inclusive political transition and underlined the importance of protecting the rights of all Syrians, both publicly and as part of our engagement with international partners and the interim Syrian authorities.

On 6 March the UK Government revoked 24 designations under the Syrian sanctions regime. These changes will support the Syrian people in re-building their country and promote security and stability. We keep all our sanctions regimes under close review to ensure that they are used as a responsive tool.