Asked by: Jacob Young (Conservative - Redcar)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the ability of the International Atomic Energy Agency to effectively monitor Iran’s nuclear programme.
Answered by James Cleverly
Iran has been in non-compliance with its Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) commitments since July 2019. Iran's nuclear programme is now more advanced than it has ever been before. Since February 2020, Iran has significantly reduced IAEA access by withdrawing from JCPoA-agreed monitoring arrangements, and suspending its implementation of the Additional Protocol.
The UK has repeatedly made clear that Iran must fully co-operate with the IAEA, including on all issues related to the IAEA's separate safeguards investigation. Doing so is both a legally-binding obligation and essential to assuring the international community of the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear programme.
Asked by: Jacob Young (Conservative - Redcar)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government plans to take at the United Nations on the expiry of the UN conventional arms embargo on Iran in October 2020.
Answered by James Cleverly
The UK has been clear that the scheduled expiry of the UN conventional arms embargo in October 2020 would have major implications for regional security and stability. The Foreign Secretary discussed this with Secretary Pompeo during his recent visit to Washington and with his French and German counterparts on 10 September. The UK Government continue to engage regional partners, the US, and others, to find a solution to Iranian proliferation in the region, whilst upholding the authority and integrity of the UN Security Council. We will also continue to enforce sanctions regimes including those under UNSCRs 1540, 1701, and 2216 which prohibit the proliferation of weapons to Lebanese Hizballah and the Houthis in Yemen. The UK encourages all states to implement national export control best practice in support of these regimes. The EU arms embargo and UN ballistic missile restrictions on Iran will also remain in place until at least 2023.
Asked by: Jacob Young (Conservative - Redcar)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on the expiry of the UN conventional arms embargo on Iran in October 2020.
Answered by James Cleverly
The UK has been clear that the scheduled expiry of the UN conventional arms embargo in October 2020 would have major implications for regional security and stability. The Foreign Secretary discussed this with Secretary Pompeo during his recent visit to Washington and with his French and German counterparts on 10 September. The UK Government continue to engage regional partners, the US, and others, to find a solution to Iranian proliferation in the region, whilst upholding the authority and integrity of the UN Security Council. We will also continue to enforce sanctions regimes including those under UNSCRs 1540, 1701, and 2216 which prohibit the proliferation of weapons to Lebanese Hizballah and the Houthis in Yemen. The UK encourages all states to implement national export control best practice in support of these regimes. The EU arms embargo and UN ballistic missile restrictions on Iran will also remain in place until at least 2023.