Asked by: Richard Foord (Liberal Democrat - Honiton and Sidmouth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on the potential merits of establishing a special tribunal on the crime of aggression following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine; and if he will take steps to ensure that such a tribunal has sufficient international legitimacy at the UN General Assembly.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK supports work towards establishing a Special Tribunal on the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine as a means of promoting accountability for atrocities in Ukraine. The UK has played an active role in discussions with Ukraine and close partners in the "core group" working to progress this commitment. On 3-4 February, senior UK legal experts participated in a meeting in Brussels that made progress on technical elements of the legal instruments for the establishment of the Special Tribunal. We are working to ensure the instruments are legally sound and therefore able to attract broad international support. We welcome Ukraine's intent to finalise an agreement with the Council of Europe (CoE), enabling the Special Tribunal to make full use of the CoE's existing infrastructure.
Asked by: Richard Foord (Liberal Democrat - Honiton and Sidmouth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what his policy is on the potential establishment of a special international criminal tribunal to investigate and prosecute individuals for the crime of aggression in relation to Ukraine.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK supports work towards establishing a Special Tribunal on the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine as a means of promoting accountability for atrocities in Ukraine. The UK has played an active role in discussions with Ukraine and close partners in the "core group" working to progress this commitment. On 3-4 February, senior UK legal experts participated in a meeting in Brussels that made progress on technical elements of the legal instruments for the establishment of the Special Tribunal. We are working to ensure the instruments are legally sound and therefore able to attract broad international support. We welcome Ukraine's intent to finalise an agreement with the Council of Europe (CoE), enabling the Special Tribunal to make full use of the CoE's existing infrastructure.
Asked by: Richard Foord (Liberal Democrat - Honiton and Sidmouth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether it is his policy to support the establishment of a special tribunal on the crimes of aggression following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK supports work towards establishing a Special Tribunal on the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine as a means of promoting accountability for atrocities in Ukraine. The UK has played an active role in discussions with Ukraine and close partners in the "core group" working to progress this commitment. On 3-4 February, senior UK legal experts participated in a meeting in Brussels that made progress on technical elements of the legal instruments for the establishment of the Special Tribunal. We are working to ensure the instruments are legally sound and therefore able to attract broad international support. We welcome Ukraine's intent to finalise an agreement with the Council of Europe (CoE), enabling the Special Tribunal to make full use of the CoE's existing infrastructure.
Asked by: Richard Foord (Liberal Democrat - Honiton and Sidmouth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to help uphold the constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the context of the All-Serbian Assembly.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to upholding the constitutional framework, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), as set out in the Dayton Agreement. We have underlined with Serbian and BiH leaders concerns about the 'All Serb Assembly'. I raised the importance of maintaining peace and stability in BiH on my visit to Serbia with senior government figures this week, alongside the Prime Minister's Special Envoy for the Western Balkans, Lord Peach. We consistently encourage Western Balkan leaders to strengthen regional stability and adhere to their commitments on good neighbourly relations, including those made at 2018's Berlin Process Summit.
Asked by: Richard Foord (Liberal Democrat - Honiton and Sidmouth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department has had discussions with Donald Trump's presidential campaign team on US support for Ukraine.
Answered by David Rutley
The UK and the US have been at the forefront of support to Ukraine since the beginning of Putin's illegal invasion. The Foreign Secretary travelled to Washington on 6-7 December where he heard strong support from all sides for future military and non-military aid. We will continue to work with US counterparts to deepen and strengthen our mutual priorities. Continued US support, funding, and leadership through 2024 is critical for Ukraine's prospects against Russia's continued egregious actions. We hope that US Congress will be able to agree a new funding package for Ukraine as part of its wider ongoing budget negotiations.
Asked by: Richard Foord (Liberal Democrat - Honiton and Sidmouth)
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 Ethiopian counterpart on (a) supporting the families of those killed in the crash of Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 302, (b) the release of an air accident investigation report, and (c) establishing a UK coroner's inquest.
Answered by Gillian Keegan
Our thoughts remain with the victims and their families of this tragic accident, and appreciate the distress caused by the ongoing delays. Officials at the British Embassy in Addis Ababa have been in contact with the Ethiopian Ministry of Transport and Air Accident Investigation Department to discuss the release of the final air accident report and will continue to lobby them for its immediate release. The Ethiopian authorities have said the report was delayed due to the pandemic and have not yet confirmed a new date for issue. We will continue to urge the Ethiopian authorities to release the report as soon as possible, as this will be part of the requirement for any inquest hearing into the crash to proceed.