Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to (a) address the security and political situation in Burundi and (b) support the emergence of conditions conducive to the organisation of inclusive and peaceful elections in that country.

In the last month, I have met, phoned and written to the Burundian Foreign Minister, telling him that I am deeply concerned about the situation in Burundi, and that I expected the Burundian government to end the violence, to act in accordance with the principles of the Arusha Agreement and to take concrete steps towards establishing conditions for free, fair and peaceful elections. I have reiterated these points in public statements of 14 and 26 May.

During my attendance at the African Union Summit on 11-12 June, I spoke to the Kenyan, Rwandan, and Ugandan Foreign Ministers, as well as the Chairperson of the African Union Peace and Security Council (PSC), on the need for the region to put pressure onto the Burundian government to deliver stability and credible, inclusive elections. British Government High Commissioners, Ambassadors, and senior officials have been repeating these messages throughout the East Africa region.

I fully support the actions proposed by the African Union PSC as detailed in its 13 June communiqué
http://www.peaceau.org/uploads/psc-515-comm-burundi-13-6-2015.pdf. FCO officials and I are working with the region and international partners in an effort to persuade the Burundian government to work within this framework.