Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with counterpart in Uzbekistan on support for Afghan refugees.

The UK continues to work closely with Uzbekistan on the evacuation of Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) eligible persons. The Foreign Secretary discussed cooperation on Afghanistan with the Uzbek Foreign Minister at the OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) Ministerial Council in December 2022. The Minister for South Asia, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, also discussed evacuations and securing safe passage for those fleeing Afghanistan on several occasions with his counterparts in the Uzbek Government during 2022, and during his visit to Uzbekistan in September 2021.