Stephen Gethins

The Foreign Secretary spoke to Turkish Foreign Minister Fidan about the security situation in northern Syria on a number of occasions; most recently at the International Contact Group for Syria in Riyadh on 12 January. I spoke most recently to Deputy Turkish Foreign Minister Yilmaz on 24 December 2024. This is part of regular Ministerial and senior official engagement with Turkish counterparts on this issue. We continue to urge all sides to refrain from activity that will lead to loss of civilian life, damage to civilian infrastructure, and to avoid further destabilisation and civilian suffering in the region.

Heavy wind and rain from Tropical Cyclone Chido have caused widespread damage in Mozambique and Malawi, and have resulted in extensive crop and infrastructure damage in parts of the region. Flooding has increased the risk of disease outbreak in a region where cholera is endemic, and cases are on the rise. Northern Mozambique was most affected by Tropical Cyclone Chido; resulting in 120 deaths, and impacting 687,000 people, many of whom are already internally displaced and affected by conflict.

To support, the UK has provided £5 million to Mozambique, focusing on providing emergency shelter, clean water, sanitation needs and preparedness building. Barring heavy rain and greater flood risk, Tropical Cyclone Chido has not had a substantial impact on Northern Zambia.

Heavy wind and rain from Tropical Cyclone Chido have caused widespread damage in Mozambique and Malawi, and have resulted in extensive crop and infrastructure damage in parts of the region. Flooding has increased the risk of disease outbreak in a region where cholera is endemic, and cases are on the rise. Northern Mozambique was most affected by Tropical Cyclone Chido; resulting in 120 deaths, and impacting 687,000 people, many of whom are already internally displaced and affected by conflict.

To support, the UK has provided £5 million to Mozambique, focusing on providing emergency shelter, clean water, sanitation needs and preparedness building. Barring heavy rain and greater flood risk, Tropical Cyclone Chido has not had a substantial impact on Northern Zambia.

The UK Government remains deeply concerned about the impact of military activity on healthcare facilities in Gaza. Medical staff and facilities must be protected, and civilians should be able to safely access medical treatment. It is unacceptable that northern Gaza now has no functioning major health facilities, following strikes on the Kamal Adwan hospital. In our statement to the UN Security Council on 3 January, we dismayed at the deterioration of the healthcare situation in Gaza, and called on Israel to clarify the whereabouts of medical staff detained from hospitals in the north. I have repeatedly underlined our grave concern about these issues with Israeli counterparts, most recently on 3 January and again today 8 January.

A Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability (JACS) strategic assessment is an OFFICIAL SENSITIVE paper that is used to underpin UK national security strategies, as well as UK government policy and programming. We do not publicly comment on the timings of specific JACS assessments.

FCDO Ministers meet with a wide range of officials, but there have been no official meetings with Israeli officials since 7 December 2024.

The UK remains in close contact with the Azerbaijani Government on a wide range of issues, including the humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. I spoke with the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister on 31 October and discussed the situation in the region.

Since the coup in February 2021, the UK has provided more than £150 million for life-saving humanitarian assistance, healthcare, education and support for civil society and local communities in Myanmar. UK Ministers and officials work with many international partners to address the Myanmar crisis including the EU. G7 Foreign Ministers reiterated their commitment to addressing the Myanmar crisis in their November 2024 Foreign Ministers' Meeting. FCDO officials continue to coordinate with the EU on sanctions, including announcing a joint round of sanctions with Canada in October 2024 which targets the Myanmar military's access to military material, equipment and funds.

The Foreign Secretary and I have had no discussions with our international counterparts on global oil price fluctuations caused by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

The UK Government is committed to helping low income countries pursue green industrialisation pathways by promoting inclusive and sustainable economic development, and supporting industrial decarbonisation.

Examples include raising over £470 million of investment through Manufacturing Africa in Rwanda and Ethiopia, £7 million investment by British International Investment in Planet Solar, using solar power to increase Sierra Leone's power supply by 30%, and support to the Africa Green Industrialisation Initiative.

The UK continues to call on Israel to increase humanitarian and commercial access into the Occupied Palestinian Territories by ensuring all aid crossings are fully operational, including the port of Ashdod. The Foreign Secretary recently spoke to Israeli Officials and raised the urgent need for a rapid increase in aid for those most in need. FCDO officials have raised the matter of this donation directly with the Israeli authorities. At a UK-chaired meeting of the UN Security Council on 12 November, Lord Collins called on Israel to immediately make good on its commitment to flood Gaza with aid. The Foreign Secretary reaffirmed these messages and the urgent need for a resolution at the UN Security Council on 18 November.

Since 2011, the UK has supported over 110 million people to adapt to climate change.  We support countries to produce and implement whole-of-society national adaptation plans, have several regional programmes supporting climate-resilient economies, and fund research informing adaptation solutions. UK experts have developed financing models; after Hurricane Beryl this July, the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility paid over 76 million dollars to support their recovery. An initial investment in the Resilience and Adaptation Fund currently in development will enable vulnerable households to secure better incomes, assets, and access to food, water and productive land; building their resilience to climate change.

My officials will follow up with the British Council on these points. The British Council is operationally independent from Government; its priorities, programmes and operations are approved by its Board of Trustees.

As an Arms Length Body, the British Council is operationally independent. They set out their plans in their Annual Corporate Plan. The Government is committed to a successful British Council that is financially stable. Our funding to the British Council underlines our support. FCDO will provide the British Council with £162.5 million Grant-in-Aid in 2024/25. Funding for 2025/26 will be announced in due course.

The UK is appalled by recent reports of the Rapid Support Forces' indiscriminate shelling of Zamzam camp, the largest camp for internally displaced persons (IDP) in Sudan. There are an estimated 500,000 people living in Zamzam camp, where famine was declared by The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Committee in August. The warring parties must fulfil the commitments they made in Jeddah to prevent harm to civilians and abide by International Humanitarian Law. The UK is in touch with partners to ensure we support the response, including to those who may be displaced from the camp by the violence. The UK is one of the biggest supporters to the Sudan Humanitarian Fund, which provides support to local responders including the Emergency Response Rooms.

UK missions facilitate St Andrews's Day celebrations in a range of innovative ways, tailoring their support to both host-nation and Scottish diaspora interests. 2024 examples include: the Paris Embassy hosting a Reception, attended by the Deputy First Minister of Scotland; the Ottawa High Commission jointly hosting a reception with Scottish Government colleagues; and in Kyiv, activities highlighting Ukraine-Scotland connections - including their sharing St Andrew as the national patron saint. In Singapore, FCDO officials will support the Secretary of State for Scotland's attendance as guest of honour at an event attended by 450 guests from the business and Scottish diaspora community.

As the Foreign Secretary made clear during his visit to Moldova on 20 November, the UK is committed to supporting Moldova's democratic resilience in the face of Russian hybrid aggression. During my visit to Chisinau on 16-17 September, I met President Sandu, Deputy Prime Minister Popsoi and Defence Minister Nosatii to reaffirm the UK's steadfast support. This year alone, the UK is providing £34 million of humanitarian, development and defence support to Moldova, including £6.3 million through the Good Governance Fund to strengthen Moldova's capacity to respond to internal and external threats including information threats.

I fully endorse the findings of the OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights report. I made this clear in my statement of 27 October, and our Embassy in Tbilisi reiterated our concerns regarding the need to transparently and thoroughly investigate allegations of electoral violations in a further public statement on 25 November. The new Georgian Government must ensure that these concerns are addressed, and return to a trajectory inline with the democratic values expected of an aspirant NATO member.

The UK has consistently been one of the leading international investors in Colombia. UK investors are protected by the Bilateral Investment Treaty and use it to inform their investment decisions. Since the formation of the new government, FCDO and DBT officials have discussed the content and provisions of the Treaty with the Colombian Government, including impact on various sectors. The Colombian Government has committed to working with us to ensure the agreement can continue to deliver benefits for UK businesses and Colombia.

Alongside our European allies, we continue to urge Armenia and Azerbaijan to utilise upcoming multilateral meetings to maintain momentum on the peace process to finalise a lasting peace agreement. Officials in London, Baku and Yerevan remain in regular close contact with European counterparts on peace negotiations. We regularly discuss these issues with our European counterparts.

The conflict in Sudan has created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, with famine now declared in Zamzam IDP camp in Darfur. 25.6 million people are facing crisis, emergency and famine levels of food insecurity across Sudan. The UK continues to put pressure on the Sudanese authorities to keep the Adre border open and allow for humanitarian assistance to reach those most in need. The UK works closely with key international partners, including the US, to bring an end to the conflict, protect civilians and press for improved humanitarian access. The UK welcomes the formation and work of the newly formed ALPS (Aligned for Advancing Lifesaving and Peace in Sudan) group. The UK will continue to work with the US to put pressure on the warring parties to open up humanitarian access to ensure life-saving assistance can reach people in need. In August, I visited the region where I saw the impact of the conflict in Sudan on South Sudan - a country already facing its own humanitarian emergency. Here, I met with those who had fled both violence and hunger, re-iterating the true cost of this conflict and also met with bilateral partners including the US Ambassador to South Sudan. Lord Collins also co-hosted a side event at UNGA focused on tackling conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) in Sudan. This event spotlighted the situation for women and girls on the ground, explored the gaps in the ongoing response to CRSV, including the role of the international community in supporting and facilitating local and women-led efforts, and highlighted the urgent need for accountability.

Preventing conflict and empowering women and girls is critical to the delivery of the government's missions, and the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) remains a priority for the UK. We are working to prevent and respond to conflict-related sexual violence, including as vice chair of the International Alliance on PSVI and by supporting thousands of survivors around the world. Decisions on exact future strategies will be taken by ministers in due course.

As of the end of September 2024, £70 million had been disbursed. The rest of the UK's funding to Sudan this year - which now stands at £97 million following further UK support since March - will be distributed by the end of the financial year.

Jordan has shown tremendous generosity in hosting an estimated 1.3 million Syrian refugees in addition to 2.3 million Palestinian refugees registered with UNRWA. UK support to Jordan includes humanitarian aid, and investment in education, social protection and job opportunities, reaching both refugees and vulnerable Jordanians. FCDO Minister of State for Development Anneliese Dodds visited Jordan on 7-8 August and reaffirmed UK's commitment to supporting Jordan and the refugees it hosts. UK funding allows refugees to live in safety and with dignity until they are able to eventually return home. We acknowledge the increased pressure placed on local services for Jordanian communities.